Google urges EU top court to uphold scrapping of €1.49bn fine

Google has asked the Court of Justice of the European Union to reject the European Commission’s appeal and keep the General Court’s 2024 decision that annulled a €1.49 billion antitrust fine for its AdSense platform [1]. The outcome will determine whether the EU can revive a penalty imposed in 2019 for restrictive contracts with publishers, a key test for the bloc’s ability to enforce digital‑advertising rules.

Legal backdrop

The European Commission originally fined Google €1.49 billion in 2019, alleging that its AdSense contracts between 2006 and 2016 contained exclusivity clauses that blocked rival search‑advertising platforms from placing ads on publishers’ sites [2]. In September 2024, the EU General Court overturned the penalty, finding critical errors in the Commission’s assessment of the case and the duration of the contracts [1]. Google’s counsel, Josh Holmes, argued that the Commission ignored evidence showing competitors had “substantial, fair opportunities” to compete and that the General Court’s reasoning was “clear and complete” [1].

Stakes for the EU regulator

Commission lawyer Anthony Dawes warned that reinstating the fine would “turn case law on its head,” imposing an unprecedented retroactive investigative burden on regulators and potentially allowing exclusive contracts to be deemed lawful by default [1]. The fine is one of four EU antitrust penalties that have totalled €9.5 billion against Google over nearly two decades, making the case a litmus test for the Commission’s enforcement credibility [2]. A non‑binding advisory opinion from a court adviser is scheduled for 12 November 2026, with the final, binding judgment expected in the months that follow [1].

What to watch

• The advisory opinion due on 12 Nov 2026, which will signal the EU judges’ likely stance.
• The final CJEU ruling expected in early 2027, which will confirm whether the fine remains void.
• Potential follow‑up actions by the Commission, such as new investigations into Google’s ad‑tech practices under the Digital Markets Act.

The case hinges on whether the EU’s top court will uphold a rare reversal of a major antitrust penalty, a decision that could reshape the regulatory landscape for digital advertising and set precedents for future big‑tech enforcement.