Google changes divide European price comparison sites
Beslist.nl fears less free traffic for online shops as Google adapts its European search results to the DMA.
Price comparison sites and online shops are objecting to recent changes to Google Search in the European Economic Area. Beslist.nl says the changes reduce the free reach of online shops and could increase the cost of paid advertising.
Google began showing adjusted search results in Europe in September to comply with the Digital Markets Act. Under the new format, separate sections for price comparison sites and suppliers appear among other features. According to trade publication Twinkle, many organic product carousels in which online shops could appear without paying for advertising also disappeared around 15 and 16 September.
Beslist.nl says the change does not automatically give consumers more choice. The company points to examples in which, according to the platform, product sections show less relevant results. That assessment comes from Beslist.nl itself and is not an independent finding covering all searches.
Measurements by Productrise, cited by Twinkle, are said to indicate a 90 to 100 per cent decline in the visibility of certain organic product results in the Netherlands. That percentage concerns visibility in search results, not an equally large fall in turnover or visitors for all online shops.
The paid Google Shopping advertisements have not disappeared, according to the reports. Beslist.nl does fear that more online shops will become dependent on paid placements if free product listings appear less often. This could increase demand for advertising space and push up cost per click.
In July, the European Commission found that Google Search favoured its own services, including Shopping, over comparable services from competitors. The Commission required Alphabet to take measures in response. The September changes are part of Google's attempt to comply with those obligations, but price comparison sites consider their impact harmful.
Beslist.nl and other comparison services therefore want to send a letter to the European Commission. Their objection highlights a tension within the DMA: the same intervention intended to create room for competitors can alter the format of search results in a way that causes other market participants to lose traffic. The Commission must assess whether the implementation achieves the law's objective.
One story, several perspectives
What is established
- The European Commission requires Google to take measures against self-preferencing in Search.
- Google has adjusted how product and comparison results are presented in the European Economic Area.
- Beslist.nl and other price comparison sites say they are losing free reach as a result.
Left
Arguments Digital gatekeepers must be actively constrained, because otherwise competitors will remain dependent on the choices of a single platform. The Commission must not only intervene formally, but also check whether online shops and consumers are genuinely being given more choice.
Values Fair competition, curbing power and protecting smaller market participants.
Consequences Stricter remedies could cost Google market share or advertising revenue, but could give price comparison sites and online shops more room.
Centre
Arguments The DMA must be implemented using measurable criteria for relevance, reach and competition. An independent evaluation of the new search sections is needed before the Commission concludes that the solution is working or failing.
Values Proportionality, evidence, consumer interests and practicability.
Consequences A technical adjustment may be sufficient, but it will take time and could temporarily create uncertainty for online shops that have built their marketing around Google.
Right
Arguments The European Commission must be careful not to prescribe search results so rigidly that they become less clear for users. If Google is required to make competitors visible, those services must also compete on quality and relevance.
Values Market forces, freedom of choice, efficiency and restrained oversight.
Consequences A lighter approach could protect innovation and ease of use, but may leave Google's dominant position and online shops' dependence largely intact.
The perspectives describe how these political currents typically approach the subject; the newsroom takes no position on which perspective is right.
Fact-check Approved · Nour Haddad — AI agent
This check was carried out by AI: every claim was re-tested against the sources. Even an approved article can contain errors — stay critical.
The European regulations and the specific changes are supported by a Commission source and a trade publication. Company claims about relevance, traffic and advertising costs are framed as expectations or positions.
- confirmed Google is adjusting its European search results because of the Digital Markets Act. — The Commission describes the DMA obligations and the measures against self-preferencing. source
- confirmed Organic product carousels largely disappeared around 15 and 16 September. — Reported by Twinkle on the basis of the rollout described. source
- confirmed Productrise measured a 90 to 100 per cent decline in visibility in the Netherlands. — Cited by Twinkle as a Productrise measurement; not presented as a fall in turnover. source
- confirmed Paid Google Shopping advertisements remained in place, according to the reports. — Twinkle distinguishes between organic product results and paid advertisements. source
Editor's note
The Commission's decision and the consequences reported by Beslist.nl are presented separately. The stated decline in visibility is a measurement by Productrise as cited by Twinkle, not an independently established fall in turnover.Sources
More on this in Dutch media
- RTL Nieuws — „google google shopping”
- FD — „google google shopping”
- Trouw — „google google shopping”