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The European Union delivered a thunderous strike against Silicon Valley on Friday, slapping Google with a $3.5 billion fine for abusing its dominance in advertising technology—echoing the same conduct at the center of the U.S. Justice Department’s recent monopoly case.

The penalty, equal to €2.95 billion, is one of the largest antitrust fines in the bloc’s history. Regulators said Google manipulated the system to give its own AdX exchange—the platform that matches advertisers with publishers selling ad space—an unlawful edge over rivals.

60 Days to Rewrite the Playbook

The European Commission gave Google two months to propose a credible fix. The tech giant must “cease its inherent conflicts of interest along the adtech supply chain” or face even more punishing remedies, officials warned.

“Today’s decision shows that Google abused its dominant position in adtech, harming publishers, advertisers, and consumers,” said Teresa Ribera, the EU’s executive vice-president for clean, just, and competitive transition. “This behavior is illegal under EU antitrust rules. Google must now come forward with a serious remedy … and if it fails, we will not hesitate to impose strong remedies.”

Echoes of the U.S. Antitrust War

The ruling comes as a Virginia federal judge considers whether to break apart Google’s ad business altogether—a seismic outcome that could reshape the digital advertising landscape worldwide. Both sides of the Atlantic now appear aligned in their assessment: Google’s dominance isn’t just a business model, it’s an antitrust liability.

A Battle Over the Soul of Digital Markets

Ribera sharpened the commission’s stance with broader language on fairness and trust in digital economies. “Digital markets exist to serve people and must be grounded in trust and fairness. When markets fail, public institutions must act to prevent dominant players from abusing their power,” she said. “True freedom means a level playing field, where everyone competes on equal terms and citizens have a genuine right to choose.”

The fine marks the EU’s latest escalation in a years-long tug-of-war with Big Tech over market fairness. For Google, the next 60 days may determine whether it can hold its empire together—or whether regulators will force it to break apart the very machinery that powers its digital dominance.