BRUSSELS, January 27, 2026, 14:03 CET
- The European Commission opened two proceedings to spell out how Google must comply with key Digital Markets Act duties.
- One tracks Android interoperability for third-party AI services; the other targets access to Google Search data on FRAND terms.
- Brussels said the process should wrap up within six months, with draft measures due within three months.
The European Commission on Tuesday opened two “specification proceedings” aimed at steering Alphabet’s Google toward compliance with the bloc’s Digital Markets Act, focusing on Android access for AI services and data-sharing obligations tied to Google Search.
The move matters now because search and mobile AI are converging fast, and the EU wants smaller firms to plug into the same building blocks that the largest platforms use. Brussels is also leaning harder on the DMA as a rulebook with teeth, not just a warning sign.
For Google, the cases cut into two assets it guards closely: the features controlled by Android and the query and ranking signals that help power Search and new AI products. Rival services argue that without access, “choice” is mostly a slogan.
The first proceeding covers Google’s duty under Article 6(7) of the DMA to offer “free and effective interoperability” — meaning other developers’ apps and services should work with key hardware and software functions as well as Google’s own — for features controlled by Android, including those used by Google’s AI service Gemini. The second tracks Article 6(11), which requires Google to share anonymised ranking, query, click and view data from Google Search on “FRAND” terms — fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory — and looks at whether AI chatbot providers can qualify for that access. Europa
EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen said the proceedings are meant to ensure third-party search engines and AI providers get the “same access” to search data and Android features as Google’s own services. Google’s senior competition counsel Clare Kelly said “Android is open by design” and that Google is already licensing Search data under the DMA, but warned that further rules could hit “user privacy, security, and innovation.” EU competition chief Teresa Ribera said the goal was an “open and fair” playing field, not one tilted toward the “largest few.” Reuters
The Commission said it plans to conclude the proceedings within six months. It expects to send preliminary findings within three months, and publish non-confidential summaries so third parties can comment.
Brussels stressed the process does not, by itself, declare Google compliant or not. It said it can still pursue non-compliance decisions later, including fines or periodic penalty payments.
The main uncertainty is how far the Commission goes on the mechanics: what counts as “equally effective” access on Android, how search data is anonymised, and what conditions are imposed on rivals that receive it. Google has signalled it will argue that wider sharing raises privacy and security risks, while complainants are likely to push for broader and more timely datasets.
The proceedings fall short of a formal investigation, but they add to EU pressure on Google as regulators also scrutinise how the company uses online content for AI models and services, the Associated Press reported. Apnews
Under the DMA, the Commission can fine companies up to 10% of worldwide annual turnover, rising to 20% for repeated infringements, and can impose periodic penalty payments, according to the Commission’s DMA explainer. Europa
For now, the Commission is drafting the rulebook inside the rulebook: setting out concrete measures, inviting rivals’ input, then telling Google what “compliance” must look like in practice. Markets will watch whether that guidance forces product changes — or triggers a new round of legal and technical trench warfare.
