The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) formally designated Google with strategic market status (SMS) in general search and search advertising — giving regulators new powers to shape how Google operates in these sectors.

What’s included. The designation covers Google’s general search and search advertising services — including AI-powered features such as AI Overviews and AI Mode — but excludes the Gemini AI assistant and certain news and syndication products.

The CMA emphasized that the designation is not a finding of wrongdoing but enables “proportionate, targeted interventions” to ensure fair treatment for consumers and competitors.

Why we care. The move marks the first major application of the UK’s new Digital Markets Competition Regime, introduced in January 2025 to rein in tech giants’ dominance and promote fairer competition. It also gives UK regulators new power to shape how Google Search and its ad systems operate — potentially impacting visibility, targeting, and pricing.

Future interventions could alter how search ads are displayed or ranked, how data is shared, and how ad auctions work. In short, the rules governing how advertisers reach UK consumers through Google may soon change, affecting both performance and cost.

What’s next. The CMA will begin consulting on potential interventions later this year, which could include transparency obligations, data-sharing requirements, or limits on how Google prioritizes content and ads in search results.

The industry context: The UK joins regulators in the U.S., EU, and Japan in tightening scrutiny of digital gatekeepers. Similar efforts abroad have led to stricter interoperability and data-use rules for dominant platforms.

Google’s response: Google acknowledged the designation, saying it expects new regulations on how Search operates but cautioned against “unduly onerous restrictions” that could “slow product launches” and harm innovation.

The company noted that Google Search contributed £118 billion to the UK economy in 2023 and argued that past regulatory overreach in other markets has cost businesses an estimated €114 billion.

The bottom line: The CMA’s decision signals a new era of oversight for Big Tech in the UK. While immediate changes are unlikely, advertisers, publishers, and consumers could soon see a more regulated — and possibly more competitive — search ecosystem.

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About the Author

Anu Adegbola has been Paid Media Editor of Search Engine Land since 2024. She covers paid search, paid social, retail media, video and more. In 2008, Anu’s career started with delivering digital marketing campaigns (mostly but not exclusively Paid Search) by building strategies, maximising ROI, automating repetitive processes and bringing efficiency from every part of marketing departments through inspiring leadership both on agency, client and marketing tech side. Outside editing Search Engine Land article she is the founder of PPC networking event - PPC Live and host of weekly podcast PPC Live The Podcast. She is also an international speaker with some of the stages she has presented on being SMX (US, UK, Munich, Berlin), Friends of Search (Amsterdam, NL), brightonSEO, The Marketing Meetup, HeroConf (PPC Hero), SearchLove, BiddableWorld, SESLondon, PPC Chat Live, AdWorld Experience (Bologna, IT) and more.