UK antitrust regulator takes aim at Google’s search dominance

Google is facing multiple antitrust actions in the United States, and European regulators have also tightened the screws. You can now add the UK to Google’s list of government concerns. The country’s antitrust regulator, known as the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), has confirmed that Google has “strategic market status”, paving the way for more limits on how Google conducts its business in the UK. Of course, Google is opposed to this approach.

The designation relates to the UK’s new competition regime for digital markets, adopted earlier this year. Shortly after, the CMA announced it was conducting an investigation into whether Google should be granted strategic market status. The result of this process is a resounding “yes”.

This label does not mean that Google has done anything illegal or that it is subject to immediate regulation. This simply means that the company has “significant and well-established market power” in one or more areas within the CMA’s jurisdiction. Specifically, the agency found that Google dominates in search and search advertising, holding more than 90% of internet searches in the UK.

In Google’s antitrust lawsuits in the United States, the rapid rise of generative AI has muddied the waters. Google has repeatedly claimed that the proliferation of AI companies offering search services means there is strong competition. In the UK, regulators note that Google’s Gemini AI assistant does not fall within the scope of the strategic market status designation. However, some search-related AI features, such as AI previews and AI mode, are included.

According to the CMA, consultations on possible interventions to ensure effective competition will begin later this year. The agency’s first round of antitrust measures will likely extend to solutions that Google has introduced in other regions or offered on a voluntary basis in the United Kingdom. This could include giving publishers more control over how their data is used in search and “choice screens” that suggest Google alternatives to users. Measures requiring new actions from Google could be announced in the first half of 2026.