EU warns Google: Gemini cannot be the only AI with deep Android integration

Google has had a few run-ins with the European Commission, and today, the company got another deadline. The European Commission has now started proceedings under the Digital Markets Act (DMA) against Google for providing third-party AI service providers with equal and effective access to Android features that it uses for Gemini, and providing third-party search engines with key Google Search data.

As per the European Commission’s announcement, the Commission will conclude the proceedings within six months of opening, deciding whether Google is in compliance with the DMA. Within the first three months, the Commission will share its preliminary findings and a draft of the measures it intends to impose on Google to comply with the DMA.

This announcement is almost like a deadline to Google to open up access to its services, namely Android and Google Search, to stay compliant with the DMA. If Google is not compliant, formal investigations may be initiated, and a fine may be imposed under the DMA, up to 10% of global annual sales.

Within the Android context, Google needs to provide third-party AI developers with equal access to the same features as those available to Google’s own services, namely Gemini. The idea here is that third-party AI providers should have an equal opportunity to compete on smartphones.

Similarly, Google has to provide third-party search engine rivals with access to anonymised ranking, query, click and view data held by Google Search. These proceedings focus on the eligibility of AI chatbot providers to access the data, amongst other things. This data is said to be necessary for third-party search engines to optimize their services to offer users a genuine alternative to Google Search.

We’ve reached out to Google for a statement. We’ll update this article when we learn more.