Google says EU search changes may lower quality as it seeks to avoid fines

• The changes represent the largest quality reduction in Google's 29-year search history, with previous DMA compliance measures causing a 30% drop in free, direct booking traffic to European businesses
• Revamped search results will highlight specialized search engines at the top, with carousels of hotels, airlines, and restaurants below having key features like real-time prices stripped out
• Google has accumulated €10.38 billion in total EU antitrust penalties over nearly two decades, with the latest DMA violation fine issued in July

Summary:

Alphabet's Google implemented significant changes to its European search results on September 8 to comply with EU antitrust regulations, warning the modifications will degrade user experience and increase costs for European businesses. The company describes this as the largest quality reduction in its 29-year search history.

The changes follow an EU fine issued in July for favoring Google's own services in shopping, hotels, transport, and sports search results, violating the Digital Markets Act (DMA). The European Commission gave Google 60 days to comply or face periodic penalties up to 5% of total worldwide turnover.

Key Changes:

• One specialized search engine will be highlighted at the top of search pages
• Two additional search engines will appear with fewer details
• Carousels for hotels, airlines, and restaurants will display below, with real-time pricing features removed
• Rankings determined by Google's algorithm

Google claims the modifications favor price comparison sites (vertical search services) like Expedia and Booking.com over direct business listings. The company reports previous DMA compliance changes caused a 30% drop in free, direct booking traffic to European businesses.

Testing with millions of European users showed high dissatisfaction, with users needing to retype queries to find desired results. Users outside the EU remain unaffected.

Financial Context:

Google has accumulated €10.38 billion in EU antitrust penalties over nearly two decades. The EU fines drew criticism from unnamed officials who threatened to investigate the bloc's treatment of American companies.

Nick Fox, Google's SVP of Knowledge & Information, stated the changes boost online intermediaries at the expense of local businesses while removing helpful features.