By BV Swagath
Publication Date: 2026-04-17 07:07:00
The European Commission (EC) has outlined provisional measures that would require Google to provide third-party online search engines and AI-based search tools with access to its search engine data.
These measures are put forward in accordance with the Digital Markets Act (DMA).
Under these proposed terms, Google must supply ranking, query, click, and view data to eligible external providers, including traditional search engines and chatbots with integrated search, on a fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory (FRAND) basis.
The Commission’s proposal addresses key technical and regulatory aspects such as the criteria for who can access the data, the exact types and scope of data to be shared, the frequency of data transfers, secure anonymisation of any personal information, and how FRAND pricing should be determined.
The initiative is intended to allow rival providers to improve the performance of their own search products and make Google Search’s market dominance more contestable.
