Germany: Concluded Bundeskartellamt investigation into Google for alleged anti-competitive data processing practice due to commitments acceptance

On 5 October 2023, the Bundeskartellamt issued its ruling on the antitrust investigation into Google over alleged anti-competitive data processing practices, accepting the commitments made by the company and closing its investigation. In particular, under the commitments made, Google is mandated to offer its users the ability to provide voluntary, specific, well-informed, and unequivocal consent for processing their data across various services. Google must present corresponding options for user choices in data combination. The design of selection dialogues should avoid manipulative guidance toward cross-service data processing, preventing the use of "dark patterns." If Google's data processing terms explicitly state that certain data are not processed across services, there is no obligation to offer choice options. The Bundeskartellamt stated that the commitments remain valid until 30 September 2029.