Google is facing fresh regulatory scrutiny in the European Union, this time over its policies designed to combat search spam. The development comes after complaints from a coalition of media companies and publishers. Now, the European Commission has launched an antitrust investigation into Google’s anti-spam “site reputation abuse” policy, which aims to clean up search results.
The policy in question targets a practice often called “parasite SEO.” The term refers to when third parties publish content on a well-ranked host site to abuse the host’s high authority. This helps them quickly increase their own visibility in search results. Google argues that its moves to tackle “parasite SEO” are essential to maintain search quality and ensure that sites earning rankings do so “on the merits with their own content.”
Google faces new EU probe: Publishers claim anti-spam policy destroys revenue
However, many publishers view the policy as a threat to their business model. They claim that when their websites host content from commercial partners—a common and legitimate way to generate revenue—Google’s spam policy can unfairly demote their news and media content in search results.
EU antitrust chief Teresa Ribera expressed concern. She stated that Google’s rules might not treat news publishers in a “fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory manner.” The investigation seeks to ensure that publishers do not lose out on important revenue. This is particularly important in the current difficult financial climate facing the media industry.
The Digital Markets Act hangs over the case
This probe carries significant weight because it falls under the purview of the Digital Markets Act (DMA). The DMA is a sweeping piece of EU legislation designed to rein in the market power of major technology platforms. If the European Commission finds Google in violation of the DMA, the company could face massive fines—up to 10% of its global annual sales.
Google has firmly pushed back against the investigation. Pandu Nayak, chief scientist for Google Search, called the move “misguided” and argued that the investigation risks degrading the quality of search results for millions of European users. He also pointed out that a German court previously dismissed a similar claim, ruling Google’s policy was valid and reasonable.
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