Technology
Google Introduces New Search Layout in Europe to Meet Digital Markets Act Rules
Google has launched a redesigned version of Search results across the European Economic Area, introducing separate display units for comparison services and direct suppliers in response to the European Union's Digital Markets Act. The company detailed the changes in documentation published by Google Search Central on September 8, confirming the features are now live for users in the EEA.
The update includes two new components: an aggregator unit and a supplier unit. The aggregator unit displays results from approved vertical search services—such as online travel agencies, comparison shopping platforms, metasearch engines, and directories—for queries involving hotels, flights, long-distance trains or buses, and products. The top-ranked aggregator's listing is expanded by default, showing photos, prices, or ratings when available. Users can switch between participating aggregators, though only one aggregator unit appears per search, and clicking through leads directly to that aggregator's website.
The supplier unit, which appears only alongside the aggregator unit, gives individual businesses—such as specific hotels or airlines—their own placement in results. According to Google, suppliers do not need to submit additional data beyond what the company gathers through standard web crawling, although providing data feeds can enhance how their listings appear.
Reuters, which also reported on the rollout, described a layout in which one specialized search service appears at the top of the page, two more appear with limited details, and a carousel featuring hotels, airlines, and restaurants appears below without real-time pricing. Notably, restaurants were mentioned in Reuters' account but are not listed among the supported query types in Google's official documentation.
This rollout follows a February report indicating Google was testing changes to increase visibility for competing vertical search services, beginning with lodging searches. The move also comes after the European Commission fined Google €460 million on July 23 for favoring its own shopping, hotel, transport, and sports results over competitors, as part of a broader €890 million penalty. The Commission had given Google 60 days to demonstrate compliance or face daily fines of up to 5% of its global revenue, while also acknowledging that Google's testing at the time represented meaningful progress toward meeting requirements.
Nick Fox, Google's senior vice president of knowledge and information, told Reuters that the company is implementing significant changes to comply with the DMA, but warned that the adjustments would degrade the user experience in Europe. He said the changes favor online intermediaries over local businesses and eliminate features users regularly rely on, adding that users outside the EU would not be affected. Google described this as the most substantial reduction in Search quality in the product's 29-year history.
The company also said it tested the new design with millions of European users, who reportedly expressed high dissatisfaction, particularly due to having to retype search queries, though Reuters did not detail how the testing was conducted. Google further stated that previous DMA-related changes had already reduced free direct booking traffic to European businesses by 30%, and it anticipates the newest changes will cause additional declines.
Despite the new units, Google's underlying ranking algorithm continues to determine the order of results, according to Reuters. The European Commission has indicated it will monitor how these changes are implemented, with its 60-day compliance deadline from July extending into late September. As of now, the Commission has not stated whether the current design meets its requirements, leaving open the possibility of financial penalties if it is found insufficient.
Search performance data specific to EEA countries may begin to reflect the impact of these changes in the coming weeks, offering an early indication of how traffic patterns shift under the new system. Google has also signaled potential future changes to local search queries—covering dining, services, and things-to-do—through a similar dual-unit structure, though no timeline has been provided, and these categories are not yet included in the current Search Central documentation.