The EU has announced a new non-compliance investigation into Alphabet over Google Search and Play Store actions following the DMA.
Following up on the Digital Markets Act, the European Union is launching a “non-compliance investigation” into Alphabet, specifically centered around Google Search and specific rules in the Play Store.
The Digital Markets Act, better known as the DMA, went into effect earlier this year. The new regulation requires Google, Apple, and other “gatekeepers” to comply with new rules that attempt to improve digital competition. As a part of the regulation, the EU can investigate whether or not these companies are compliant, and this week the first investigation have been announced.
Alongside non-compliance investigations into Apple, Meta, and Amazon, the EU is also targeting Google with two areas of focus.
Firstly, there’s going to be an investigation into how Google’s rules in the Play Store affect “steering.” This refers to how apps are allowed to tell users where they can purchase or subscribe. Under the DMA, Google is required to allow developers to “steer” users to offers outside of the platform’s app store without cost, and the EU is “concerned” that both Google and Apple are not being fully compliant with those rules.
