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Google changes spam policy in EU to avert antitrust fine
The change exempts some manual demotions in the European Economic Area as the European Commission monitors compliance under the Digital Markets Act.
On Friday, Alphabet's Google modified its spam policy in Europe to address regulatory concerns that could have triggered antitrust fines under the Digital Markets Act.
Publishers complained about the European Commission's findings that Google's policy unfairly demoted websites hosting third-party content, prompting an investigation under the Digital Markets Act.
Starting August 30, manual demotion actions will not apply to users in the 27 EU nations and the European Economic Area, including Iceland, Norway, and Liechtenstein.
European Commission spokesman Thomas Regnier said, "We welcome the repeal of this policy," and confirmed the Commission will monitor Google Search for Digital Markets Act compliance.
Digital Markets Act breaches can cost companies fines of up to 10% of their global annual turnover, underscoring the stakes of Google's compliance with EU antitrust oversight of Big Tech.