The European Commission has submitted preliminary findings to Google and proposed measures to share search data with competing search engines, including AI chatbots, which are considered online search engines under the DMA, across the EU and EEA.
Under the proposal, Google must share four categories of anonymized data on fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory (FRAND) terms.
The categories are rank, query, clickAnd view Data. According to the Commission, the aim is to enable third-party search engines to “optimize their search services and challenge the position of Google Search”.
The measures are not yet binding. A public consultation will run until May, with a final decision expected to be made by July 27th.
What is in the proposal?
The measures proposed by the Commission cover six areas:
- Eligibility criteria for data recipients, including AI chatbots with search capabilities
- The amount of search data Google has to share
- Methods and intervals for data exchange
- Anonymization standards for personal data
- Guidelines for determining the FRAND price
- Procedure for beneficiaries to access the data
The data is available to authorized third parties operating search engines in the EEA, including AI chatbot providers who are qualified as such.
This is an Article 6(11) procedure after the opening of the Commission on 27 January. A separate procedure under Article 6(7) addresses Android interoperability for third-party AI. Both aim to transform comprehensive DMA obligations into concrete, enforceable rules.
AI chatbots are legitimate
The selection criteria for qualifying AI chatbots are changing the picture of visibility in AI search.
According to the proposal, AI chatbots that meet the DMA definition of online search engines could access Google’s anonymized search data. Qualified AI search products could use this data to improve their retrieval and ranking systems.
The proposed measures specify methods, frequency, access and pricing for data exchange. The technical details still need to be determined.
Google is pushing back
Google opposed the proposal in a statement provided to multiple outlets. Clare Kelly, senior competition counsel at Google, said in a statement to Engadget:
“Hundreds of millions of Europeans trust Google for their most sensitive searches – including private questions about their health, family and finances – and the Commission’s proposal would force us to share this data with third parties, with dangerously ineffective data protection measures. We will continue to vigorously defend ourselves against these abuses, which go far beyond the DMA’s original mandate and endanger people’s privacy and security.”
Google also told The Register that the investigation appears to be “driven at least in part by OpenAI,” which allegedly “seeks to exploit the DMA to collect data from Google in ways not anticipated by the drafters of the DMA.”
The company is fighting on multiple DMA fronts. Brussels submitted preliminary findings on a separate case of self-preferential treatment under Article 6(5) in 2025. In February, Google began testing search results Changes in the EU to deal with this procedure.
Why this is important
The measures are provisional and, if adopted, will only apply in the EEA. Anonymization and pricing details will remain open during the May consultation.
The longer-term question is whether AI chatbot suitability survives the final decision in July.
If the EU proposal authorizing AI chatbots is adopted, eligible products serving EU/EEA users could access anonymized signals from Google Search.
The proposal does not give AI chatbots access to Google’s index, but instead allows access to data similar to that used by Alphabet to optimize its search services, which is different from current AI search data sources.
Looking ahead
The public consultation closes on May 1st and the Commission will assess the feedback before making a final, binding decision applicable to Google by July 27th.
These procedures do not constitute a finding of noncompliance, but separate DMA enforcement may impose fines of up to 10% of global sales. The next milestone for AI visibility practitioners is the outcome of the consultation.
If the Commission maintains eligibility for AI chatbots, the focus will shift to how quickly data-sharing arrangements will allow AI tools to compete for citation visibility.
Featured Image: Samuel Boivin/Shutterstock
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