Google rejects EU breakup demand in ad tech antitrust response

Google delivered its formal response to the European Commission's €2.95 billion antitrust decision on November 13, 2025, rejecting the regulatory body's prescription for an asset sale and instead proposing product changes and technical modifications to address competition concerns.

According to a Google spokesperson statement released November 14, the company submitted a compliance proposal that "fully addresses the EC's decision without a disruptive break-up that would harm the thousands of European publishers and advertisers who use Google tools to grow their business." The submission came on the final day of the deadline imposed when the Commission fined Alphabet €2.95 billion on September 5 for conduct between 2014 and 2025.

The Commission's September decision concluded that Google's abuse stemmed from an "inherent conflict of interest" created by owning publisher ad servers through DoubleClick For Publishers, programmatic buying tools through Google Ads and DV360, and the AdX exchange infrastructure. European regulators determined behavioral remedies would be insufficient because Google repeatedly modified practices to avoid detection while maintaining anticompetitive effects.

Google's proposal includes immediate product changes such as giving publishers the option to set different minimum prices for different bidders when using Google Ad Manager, according to the statement. The company also proposed longer-term measures to increase interoperability of its tools, providing publishers and advertisers additional choice and flexibility.

The measures proposed fall substantially short of the structural sell-off the Commission envisioned. According to Politico, a Commission spokesperson confirmed receipt of Google's proposal and stated the EU executive would now analyze the proposed measures against whether they end the conflicts of interest created by Google's ownership of sell-side, buy-side, and exchange infrastructure.

The Commission has never imposed structural remedies and faces a high legal bar for doing so, legal experts told Politico. News publishers across Europe have complained they face limited options beyond Google to administer ad-powered businesses, ultimately forcing up costs for the struggling sector.

Google's European response closely mirrors proposals the company submitted to U.S. federal courts overseeing parallel ad tech antitrust proceedings. On December 23, 2024, Google offered remedies in the Department of Justice case that the company characterized as allowing browser companies to have multiple default search partner agreements across platforms, making Android agreements non-exclusive while allowing device makers to unbundle Google Play, and ensuring Gemini would not be required on devices for three years.

According to Google's DOJ filing, the proposal allows browsers to continue offering Google Search while earning revenue from partnerships. Browser companies could maintain different default search engines across platforms—such as separate defaults for iPhones and iPads—and browsing modes, with ability to change default providers at least every 12 months.

The company proposed making device makers' Android contracts non-exclusive, allowing preloading of multiple search engines and any Google app independently of Search or Chrome. "This will give our partners additional flexibility and our rivals like Microsoft more chances to bid for placement," according to the filing.

The Department of Justice filed its final post-trial brief on November 3, 2025, proposing comprehensive structural remedies requiring Google to divest its entire AdX advertising exchange within 12 months of final judgment. The government's proposal includes extensive behavioral restrictions applying for ten years, far longer than Google's proposed three-year monitoring period.

Judge Leonie Brinkema ruled on April 17, 2025, that Google illegally monopolized publisher ad server and ad exchange markets. Closing arguments in the Virginia case began November 17, with prosecutors characterizing Google's conduct as causing "extraordinary harm" to digital advertising markets through a decade-long monopolization campaign.

Google's ad exchange and publisher ad server generated approximately 12 percent of Alphabet's revenue, totaling $42 billion in recent reporting periods, according to the Commission's September decision. These figures underscore financial implications of potential structural remedies across both Atlantic jurisdictions.

The dual antitrust proceedings represent coordinated regulatory pressure on Google's advertising technology business. The Commission found Google dominant in both publisher ad servers through DoubleClick For Publishers and programmatic ad buying tools across European Economic Area markets. A United States federal court upheld similar claims in Department of Justice proceedings scheduled for remedies arguments.

Industry reactions have highlighted ongoing concerns about market concentration. Dotdash Meredith filed a comprehensive antitrust lawsuit on August 29, 2025, alleging Google's monopolistic control caused substantial financial harm to publishers. The complaint centered on Google's control of critical advertising technology infrastructure, claiming over 90% market share in publisher ad servers through DFP and 60-70% of the ad exchange market through AdX.

Publishers filed separate antitrust complaints targeting Google's AI Overviews feature, citing traffic declines exceeding 34% when AI summaries appear in search results. The Independent Publishers Alliance complained to the European Commission on June 30, 2025, alleging Google abuses market power by using publisher content for AI-generated summaries without providing opt-out options.

Google maintained in its November 14 statement that it disagrees with the European Commission's ad tech decision and will appeal. "It doesn't reflect today's highly competitive and rapidly evolving ad tech sector," according to the spokesperson. The company committed to cooperating with the EC as regulators consider the proposal, seeking "an effective solution that provides certainty and consistency for our customers across Europe, the United States and globally."

The Commission's decision reflects broader European Union efforts to regulate large technology platforms through mechanisms including the Digital Markets Act and Digital Services Act. According to the September statement, these regulations complement traditional antitrust enforcement by establishing proactive obligations for designated digital gatekeepers.

Google's proposal avoids addressing fundamental structural issues the Commission identified. The regulatory body stipulated that concerns could only be resolved if Google ceded control of market-leading ad tech tools, making the unprecedented move of specifying structural remedies in its September decision.

For digital marketing professionals, the competing proposals present dramatically different futures for advertising technology infrastructure. The Commission's structural approach would fragment Google's integrated stack, potentially creating opportunities for independent ad tech providers while introducing complexity for advertisers managing campaigns across multiple platforms.

Google's behavioral approach preserves operational integration while modifying specific practices regulators challenged. The company argues this maintains efficiency and innovation while addressing competition concerns through increased transparency and interoperability.

The Commission must now evaluate whether Google's proposed measures adequately address the conflicts of interest that drove the original enforcement action. The analysis will determine whether behavioral modifications can restore competition or whether structural separation remains necessary to prevent ongoing anticompetitive conduct.

Parallel proceedings in U.S. courts add complexity to compliance planning. Google faces potential requirements to divest Chrome browser, Android operating system components, and advertising technology assets depending on remedies judges impose in separate monopolization cases.

Judge Amit Mehta ruled on August 5, 2024, that Google illegally maintained monopolies in U.S. general search services and search text advertising markets, finding the company controls approximately 90% of online search overall and 95% on smartphones. The Department of Justice and 38 state attorneys general maintain demands that Google divest Chrome in that proceeding.

The convergence of transatlantic antitrust enforcement represents a watershed moment for digital advertising markets. Outcomes will determine whether Google maintains its integrated advertising technology business model or faces forced separation of components regulators concluded create inherent conflicts of interest.

Google's strategy appears focused on preserving business integration while making targeted concessions on specific practices. The company calculates that demonstrating flexibility on publisher pricing controls and interoperability requirements may satisfy regulators without triggering structural breakup.

The Commission's response to Google's proposal will signal whether European regulators accept behavioral modifications or insist on structural separation to restore competition. The decision carries implications extending beyond Google to establish precedent for addressing conflicts of interest in other vertically integrated digital platforms.

Timeline

• June 2023: European Commission files case seeking to break up Google's advertising technology business
• August 5, 2024: Judge Mehta rules Google illegally maintained monopolies in U.S. general search services and search text advertising
• September 5, 2025: European Commission announces €2.95 billion fine and orders remedial measures for ad tech violations
• September 22, 2025: Google ad tech antitrust remedies trial begins in Virginia federal court
• November 3, 2025: Department of Justice and Google file final post-trial briefs in ad tech case
• November 13, 2025: Google submits compliance proposal to European Commission
• November 14, 2025: Google publicly announces rejection of structural breakup in European case
• November 17, 2025: Closing arguments begin in Virginia ad tech antitrust trial
• December 23, 2024: Google offers remedies in DOJ search distribution case

Summary

Who: Google submitted formal compliance plans to the European Commission while facing Department of Justice antitrust proceedings. The European Commission imposed the €2.95 billion fine, with complainants including the European Publishers Council and advertising technology companies. Judge Leonie Brinkema oversees the Virginia ad tech case, while Judge Amit Mehta handles the search distribution proceedings.

What: Google rejected structural remedies including asset sales, instead proposing immediate product changes such as publisher pricing controls and longer-term interoperability improvements. The proposals address European Commission findings that Google abused dominance in publisher ad servers through DoubleClick For Publishers and programmatic buying tools through Google Ads and DV360. The company simultaneously proposed behavioral fixes in parallel U.S. proceedings, including multiple browser default agreements and non-exclusive Android contracts.

When: Google submitted its European Commission compliance plan on November 13, 2025, the final day of the deadline imposed when regulators fined the company €2.95 billion on September 5. The public statement appeared November 14. Closing arguments in the Virginia ad tech case began November 17, following Judge Brinkema's April 17, 2025, ruling that Google illegally monopolized publisher ad server and ad exchange markets.

Where: The European Commission proceedings cover European Economic Area markets where Google holds dominant positions in publisher ad servers and programmatic advertising tools. Parallel U.S. cases proceed in the Eastern District of Virginia for ad tech violations and D.C. District Court for search distribution monopolization. Google's advertising technology business operates globally, with the ad exchange and publisher ad server generating approximately 12 percent of Alphabet's total revenue.

Why: Google seeks to avoid forced divestiture of advertising technology assets while addressing regulatory competition concerns through behavioral modifications. The company argues structural breakup would harm European publishers and advertisers while disrupting integrated operations that deliver efficiency and innovation. Regulators concluded behavioral remedies prove insufficient because Google repeatedly modified practices to avoid detection while maintaining anticompetitive effects, leading to unprecedented demands for structural separation to eliminate conflicts of interest inherent in Google's ownership of sell-side, buy-side, and exchange infrastructure.