EU Pushes Search Data Access
- The European Commission proposed that Google share more search data with rival search engines and qualifying AI chatbots. - The proposal would require Google to open search‑data streams to competitors across the EU/EEA under the DMA. - If enacted, this could broaden access to high‑quality search context for non‑search AI products and rivals (searchenginejournal.com).
The European Commission has told Google to open parts of its search data to rivals in Europe, including some artificial intelligence chatbots. (ec.europa.eu) In preliminary findings sent on April 16, 2026, the Commission said Google should share ranking, query, click, and view data on fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory terms. The proposal applies across the European Union and European Economic Area. (ec.europa.eu) The case sits under Article 6(11) of the Digital Markets Act, the European Union law for “gatekeeper” platforms. Alphabet was designated a gatekeeper on September 6, 2023, and Google’s covered services have been subject to the law since March 7, 2024. (ec.europa.eu) Search data is the record of what people ask, what results appear, and what they click. The Commission said access to that anonymised data would let smaller search engines improve their results and “contest Google Search’s position.” (ec.europa.eu) The proposal also spells out who can qualify for access, and it explicitly includes artificial intelligence chatbots with search functionality. The Commission opened the consultation on April 16 and set a May 1, 2026 deadline for comments from companies, citizens, and other groups. (ec.europa.eu) Brussels started this specification process on January 27, 2026, saying it wanted to turn the Digital Markets Act’s broad rule into concrete instructions on scope, anonymisation, access conditions, and pricing. The Commission must adopt any final binding decision by July 27, 2026. (ec.europa.eu) Google is pushing back on privacy grounds. Clare Kelly, Google’s senior competition counsel, said the plan would force the company to hand over sensitive search data to third parties with “dangerously ineffective privacy protections.” (engadget.com) The Commission has said the data must be anonymised, and the consultation asks whether its technical safeguards preserve privacy without making the dataset too weak to use. That leaves the next fight in Brussels centered on how much search context rivals can get without exposing individual users. (ec.europa.eu)
