EU hits Google with €2.95 billion fine

On Friday, September 5, 2025, the European Commission struck hard. Google was fined a colossal €2.95 billion for favoring its own advertising services, diverting competition and increasing costs for advertisers and publishers. Faced with such a warning, the company plans to appeal, while on the other side of the Atlantic, Donald Trump is threatening to retaliate. The standoff between the regulator and the tech giant is intensifying.

Extended public power as the EU weighs on online advertising

Since 2021, Brussels has been investigating Google's practices in digital advertising technology. The verdict is in: the company abused its dominant position by favoring its AdX ad exchange and its DFP platform to the detriment of competition; practices deemed illegal by the Commission. The result: a fine of €2.95 billion, the fourth imposed on Google within the Union.

Brussels doesn't stop there: Google has 60 days to propose a corrective solution. Failing which, the Commission is considering structural reform, including the sale of part of its advertising activities. In short, a punitive fine, certainly, but above all a regulatory ultimatum.

Tech Cold War? The United States threatens to retaliate

The reaction was swift: on his Truth Social network, Donald Trump denounced the decision as "very unfair" and "discriminatory," promising trade retaliation via Section 301, an arsenal of punitive customs duties against the Union.

Behind these words lies a strategic stance: defending American tech giants against European regulation. But Brussels , for its part, insists it is playing fair: "no fear or favor," says Competition Commissioner Teresa Ribera. Diplomatic tension is looming, while trade negotiations between the EU and the United States were still underway recently.