Brussels tells Google to hand rivals its search crown jewels as privacy row brews

What Brussels wants

The European Commission has set out preliminary findings under the Digital Markets Act that would force Google to open up core search data — rankings, queries, clicks and views — to rivals on fair, reasonable and non‑discriminatory terms. The aim is blunt: give competing search engines and AI chatbots the raw inputs they need to compete, rather than letting Google gatekeep the market from the outset. “Data is a key input for online search and for developing new services, including AI,” said Teresa Ribera, underscoring Brussels’ fear that small changes in data access can shut markets overnight.

Google's retort

Google pushed back hard. Clare Kelly, the company’s senior Competition Counsel, warned that the proposal “would force us to hand this data over to third parties, with dangerously ineffective privacy protections.” It has been reported that Google also alleges the probe is being driven “at least in part by OpenAI,” and that rivals are trying to use the DMA to harvest Google’s data — a claim not independently verified. Google further argues the Commission’s approach risks trading user privacy for the benefit of competitors by mandating anonymisation it says would be ineffective.

How the EU envisions it working

The Commission didn’t stop at broad strokes. Its preliminary note sketches out who would qualify for access, what datasets would be shared, how frequently, and what steps Google must take to strip personal information — along with contractual terms for use. A public consultation runs until 1 May, and a binding decision is pencilled in for 27 July 2026. So yes, the technical devil is in the details. Will anonymisation hold up? Can rivals truly build viable alternatives from the crumbs? Those are the battleground questions now.

Stakes and next steps

This is more than a regulatory tussle. It’s a test of whether Europe can force a dominant platform to open the plumbing of search in the AI era — and whether privacy can be protected while competition is restored. Responses to the Commission will shape the final remedy, and the enforcement of the DMA is only ramping up. Expect legal fireworks, a parade of expert briefs, and plenty of lobbying. The outcome will matter not just to Google and its competitors, but to every site, publisher and user who lives and dies by search.

Sources: The Register