Alphabet’s Google faces renewed exposure to a €1.49 billion ($1.7 billion) European Union antitrust penalty after an adviser to the bloc’s highest court challenged a previous ruling that had invalidated the fine, according to Reuters.
The opinion, issued Thursday by Advocate General Juliane Kokott, represents a significant development in a legal battle over Google’s conduct in the online advertising market. It raises the possibility that European regulators could restore a penalty originally imposed in 2019.
The dispute centers on Google’s AdSense advertising business and contractual restrictions that European Commission investigators concluded had unfairly limited competition.
According to Reuters’ November 12 report, Kokott criticized the EU General Court’s 2024 decision to overturn the fine, finding that the lower tribunal had applied overly demanding standards when evaluating the duration of Google’s alleged anticompetitive behavior.
Her assessment also questioned whether the lower court had adequately connected its reasoning to the legal criteria used to establish a company’s dominant market position.
The opinion is not binding, but it could influence the final judgment by the Luxembourg-based Court of Justice of the European Union, which is expected to rule in 2027. The court frequently adopts the recommendations of its advocates general, Reuters reported.
A Decade of Advertising Restrictions
The European Commission imposed the original penalty in March 2019 after concluding that Google had abused its market power through agreements with third-party website publishers.
Regulators determined that certain contractual provisions restricted publishers’ ability to display search advertisements supplied by competing advertising platforms.
The arrangements effectively protected Google’s position in search advertising by limiting opportunities for rival providers to reach customers through participating websites, according to the Commission’s findings as reported by Reuters.
The alleged violations extended from 2006 through 2016, covering a period when Google was expanding its influence across the digital advertising industry.
Google discontinued the disputed contractual provisions in 2016, several years before regulators issued the financial penalty.
The company subsequently challenged the Commission’s decision, arguing that the regulator’s assessment of its business practices was legally flawed.
That challenge succeeded in September 2024, when the General Court annulled the €1.49 billion fine after identifying shortcomings in the Commission’s analysis.
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The decision handed Google a significant legal victory and prompted the European Commission to seek a reversal from the EU’s highest court.
Legal Scrutiny Shifts Back to Google’s Market Power
Thursday’s advisory opinion places renewed attention on the standards European regulators must meet when establishing that a dominant technology company has restricted competition.
Kokott’s findings suggest that the General Court demanded an excessively rigorous examination of how long the disputed advertising arrangements remained in effect, according to Reuters.
The adviser also raised concerns about how the lower tribunal evaluated those arrangements in relation to Google’s market dominance.
The distinction matters because EU competition law prohibits companies from abusing dominant positions, although holding a substantial market share is not itself unlawful.
The Commission’s case rests on its conclusion that Google’s contractual restrictions made it harder for competing advertising providers to operate effectively.
Google has contested the regulatory assessment. During a July 2026 hearing, the company urged the Court of Justice to uphold the General Court’s decision, maintaining that the Commission’s appeal was defective, Reuters reported at the time.
The forthcoming judgment will determine whether the lower court’s annulment can stand or whether the dispute must undergo further judicial consideration.
Billions in European Competition Penalties
The AdSense dispute forms part of a broader series of European antitrust proceedings involving Google’s search, advertising and mobile technology businesses.
According to Reuters, EU regulators have imposed six antitrust penalties on Google totaling approximately €10.38 billion over nearly two decades.
Source: Reuters
