- European businesses, including airlines and hotels, fear Google’s compliance measures under the DMA.
- Concerns arise that Google’s changes may favor large online platforms over smaller businesses.
- The DMA aims to regulate tech giants’ anti-competitive practices but raises worries about fair treatment for all businesses.
European airlines, hotels, and retailers are voicing concerns about Google’s compliance measures under the Digital Markets Act (DMA). They fear that changes intended to increase user choice may inadvertently benefit large online platforms at the expense of smaller businesses. These concerns were expressed in a joint letter to EU regulators, highlighting the risk of decreased direct sales revenues for companies due to preferential treatment of powerful intermediaries.
The DMA, aimed at curbing anti-competitive practices by tech giants like Google, is currently under scrutiny by the EU. Smaller businesses fear that the investigation may focus solely on fair treatment for third-party services, overlooking their direct offerings on platforms like Google Search. Despite these concerns, Google has yet to respond, and the EU Commission leading the DMA implementation and investigation has not issued a statement. This situation underscores the challenges of regulating Big Tech while ensuring fair competition for all businesses.
