Abusive practices by Google in online advertising: Cornet Vincent Ségurel advises the Rossel Group

This European sanction follows an initial ruling obtained in June 2021 before the French Competition Authority, initiated by the Rossel Group and News Corp. The Belgian media group was the first media player in the world, alongside News Corp, to challenge Google’s abusive practices, resulting in a €221 million fine in 2021 for abuse of dominant position.

Following this sanction, on 6 September 2025, the European Commission fined Google €2.95 billion, finding that the tech giant had “acted to favor its own online display advertising services to the detriment of competing providers.“

“We rely on the courts to deliver justice for media groups weakened by the shift of their business models to digital and the significant decline in their advertising revenues. This action is crucial to defending an independent press model. It is a way to restore balance between digital giants and media groups regarding the revenues from their journalistic output. The record fine obtained before the European Commission illustrates the need to ensure fair competition and to safeguard the quality of information,” commented Thomas Deschryver, lawyer at Cornet Vincent Ségurel.

“Google captures the majority of the added value from online advertising using information it does not produce. Regulatory authorities have determined that this value extraction is partly the result of unlawful appropriation of data and manipulation of ad auction processes. Without a serious remedy through effective compensation for the victims, the market remains persistently distorted and the quality of information is threatened,” added Luc-Marie Augagneur, partner at Cornet Vincent Ségurel.

This proceeding takes place in a context of increasing sanctions: on 3 September, the CNIL also fined Google €325 million for violations of personal data regulations.

Claims for damages against Google are currently pending, notably before the French and Dutch courts.