MLex: Google faces a fresh EU copyright test over Gemini as the EU's top court is asked whether AI training, prompts, retrieval of current web content and generated summaries can infringe press publishers' rights. Hungarian judges are asking the court to clarify when the EU text-and-data-mining exception can shield those uses.

MLex: Google may not be able to rely on the hosting liability exemption under the EU's E-Commerce Directive after reviewing a YouTube creator's channel before entering into a commercial partnership, the Court of Justice ruled on 16 July 2026. The judgment could have huge implications on how national courts in the 27 EU Member States assess platform liability for monetised user-generated content.

MLex: Google, Amazon and Microsoft are facing another delay in the EU’s legislative proposal on cloud and AI development, marking another setback for the EU’s broader tech sovereignty agenda. OVHcloud, SAP and Deutsche Telekom, as well as other European competitors of US hyperscalers, are closely watching the proposal, amid a debate over how the European Commission will exactly define ‘cloud sovereignty’.

MLex: Google, Microsoft and Disney warn against UK plans to introduce ‘overly prescriptive’ proposals on tackling ‘subscription traps’, saying they would put ‘excessive burdens’ on businesses and could prove ‘extremely difficult to comply with’, weakening digital innovation and competition. Google, Microsoft and Disney warn against UK plans to introduce ‘overly prescriptive’ proposals on tackling ‘subscription traps’, saying they would put ‘excessive burdens’ on businesses and could prove ‘extremely difficult to comply with’, weakening digital innovation and competition.

MLex: Google was fined a record €325m for violating French rules on managing cookies and personalised advertising in e-mail service Gmail, the French data protection authority said today. The authority also levied a €150m penalty against Infinite Styles Services Co Ltd, the Irish subsidiary of Singapore-based online retailer Shein, for failing to get users’ consent for tracking cookies on its shein.com website.

CASE HUB See further, case facts and timeline Case facts Outline CMA Chapter II CA98 investigation into Google’s conduct in relation to its ad tech and header bidding services. Latest developments On 6 September 2024, the CMA issued its statement of objections alleging that Google abused its dominant position by ‘self preferencing’ its own ad exchange. Parties • Google UK Limited, Google Ireland Limited, Google LLC and Alphabet Inc (Google). Google is a US multinational technology company. Background Online platforms and digital advertising market study On 1 July 2020, the CMA published its final report into online platforms and digital advertising.The report identified significant issues and made an assessment of possible solutions to address market power in ad tech. The also report considered Google’s position in relation to header bidding services, which are part of the wider ad tech stack.Investigation into header bidding services On 22 March 2022, the CMA launched: (i) a Chapter I investigation into whether Google

Commercial law analysis: Jules Toynton, senior associate and Isla Neil, data, privacy and cybersecurity lawyer of DLA Piper consider the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) response to Google’s decision to lift a prohibition on device fingerprinting and the ICO’s draft guidance on the use of storage and access technologies following its response.

MLex: A legal challenge by Google Ireland against the European Commission over the Digital Services Act’s (DSA) supervisory fee has been issued by the EU General Court. The search engine, which has been designated as a Very Large Online Platform under the DSA, says the fees are unfair and rely on flawed data. The appeal, filed in February, was published in the Official Journal today.

CASE HUB See further, timeline Case facts Outline CMA Chapter II CA98 investigation into Google’s conduct in relation to its distribution of apps on Android devices in the UK, in particular, Google Play’s rules which oblige certain app developers to use Google Play’s own billing system for in-app purchases. Latest developments On 21/08/2024, the CMA decided it would not be appropriate to accept the commitments offered by Google to address the competition concerns. On the same day, the CMA closed its investigation on the basis of administrative priorities. In particular, the CMA signaled that the newly enacted Digital Markets, Competition, and Consumers Act 2024 may provide a more suitable framework for addressing the type of conduct involved in this case. Parties •

CASE HUB ARCHIVED—this archived case hub reflects the position at the date of the decision of 11 February 2022; it is no longer maintained. See further, timeline Case facts Outline CMA Chapter II CA98 investigation into suspected breaches of competition law in relation to Google’s proposals to remove third party cookies and other functionalities from its Chrome browser (50972). Latest developments On 11 February 2022, the CMA announced its decision to accept modified commitments (which will be rolled-out globally) from Google to address its competition concerns.The commitments include (amongst others):• involvement of the CMA and the ICO in the development and testing of the Privacy Sandbox proposals, to ensure they achieve effective outcomes for consumers to protect both competition and privacy• Google to engage in a more transparent process than initially proposed, including engagement with third parties and publishing test results, with the option for the CMA to require Google to address issues raised by the CMA or third parties• Google will not remove third-party cookies until the CMA is satisfied that its competition concerns

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Gosport Borough Council has published a statement confirming that it has formally acknowledged court papers recognising it as an interested party in a judicial review brought by Hampshire County Council against the government's proposals for local government reorganisation and expects to do the same in relation to a separate claim by Portsmouth City Council. Leader of Gosport Borough Council, Cllr Zoe Huggins BEM, states that the council remains committed to working collaboratively throughout the judicial review process to support the delivery of the proposed new authority while minimising further impacts on residents. The council notes that, if successful, the legal challenges could require the government to reconsider its decision.