The European Commission announced on the 16th that, in accordance with the Digital Markets Act, it has introduced two legally binding regulatory measures for U.S. company Google. These measures require Google to open up AI-related features of the Android operating system to competitors and share search data with third-party search engines to enhance competition in the digital market.
The Commission stated that, under the first measure, third-party AI assistants can have equal access to functionalities on Google Android devices as Google’s own AI services such as Gemini. Currently, third-party AI assistants have restricted access to some key features of the Android system, making it difficult to compete fairly with Google's own AI services.
The second measure requires Google to share search data with third-party search engines. The Commission believes that data sharing will help third-party search engines develop and optimize their services and promote innovation.
The Commission requires Google to implement the relevant measures according to a set timeline. From January 2027, Google must share search data with eligible third-party search engines. Users will be able to use the improved Android system from July 2027.