Yes, Brussels really wants Google to be broken up

Brussels Pushes for Google Breakup Over Digital Ad Monopoly

The tech giant Google is locked in a direct confrontation with European Union regulators concerning its dominance in digital advertising. The European Commission delivered a clear message: break up your business, or face consequences.

Google faces a deadline in early November to outline how it plans to comply with the Commission's September ruling that found the company illegally maintaining control over the infrastructure powering online ads. This ruling followed a hefty €2.95 billion fine, marking an extraordinary standoff between Google and Brussels.

The European Commission is considering an unprecedented move—forcing a structural breakup of a major U.S. company’s advertising operations, ideally through a voluntary sale but potentially by compulsion.

Unprecedented Structural Remedies

Anne Witt, competition law professor at EDHEC Business School in Lille, France, described the situation as “very unusual.” She explained that structural remedies are almost unheard of at the EU level and likened the proposed actions to “the sledgehammer.”

“Structural remedies are almost unprecedented at the EU level. It’s really the sledgehammer.” – Anne Witt, Professor of Competition Law

In a rare move, the Commission asked Google to propose its own solution while signaling that anything less than a sale of parts of its ad technology business is unlikely to satisfy antitrust requirements.

“It appears that the only way for Google to end its conflict of interest effectively is with a structural remedy, such as selling some part of its Adtech business.” – Teresa Ribera, Executive Vice President and Competition Chief of the European Commission

Summary

The EU is pushing Google towards a structural breakup to resolve antitrust issues, a move rare in European competition law and signaling a tough stance against digital advertising dominance.

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POLITICO.eu POLITICO.eu — 2025-11-04

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