Google’s parent company, Alphabet, is facing a major class action lawsuit in the UK, demanding €5.83 billion in damages. The claim alleges that British advertisers suffered financial harm due to Google’s anticompetitive behaviour in the search and advertising market.
Or Brook, a competition law expert from the University of Leeds, is leading the legal case against the tech giant. He claims Google used its dominant position to block rivals and overcharge companies that rely on online advertising.
According to the suit, Google forced phone makers to preinstall Google Search and Chrome on Android phones. This allowed Google to keep out competitors and charge higher prices for ads.
The legal action also accuses Google of paying Apple billions to make Google the default search engine on Safari, boosting its control over the market.
“UK businesses and organisations, big or small, have almost no choice but to use Google ads,” Brook said in a public statement.
He added that the lawsuit aims to hold Google accountable and secure compensation for UK advertisers who were overcharged.
The claim could benefit companies that bought Google ads between January 2011 and April 2025. Alphabet earned €16.35 billion from search ads in 2023 alone.
The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is also investigating Google’s market power.
Meanwhile, Japan has issued its first-ever cease-and-desist order against Google over similar antitrust concerns.
