A British couple’s legal battle against Google’s search practices has concluded.
Europe’s highest court upheld a €2.4 billion fine against Google, marking a victory for small businesses in the digital marketplace.
Shivaun and Adam Raff launched Foundem, a price comparison website, in June 2006.
On launch day, Google’s automated spam filters hit the site, pushing it deep into search results and cutting off its primary traffic source.
“Google essentially disappeared us from the internet,” says Shivaun Raff.
The search penalties remained in place despite Foundem later being recognized by Channel 5’s The Gadget Show as the UK’s best price comparison website.
After two years of unanswered appeals to Google, the Raffs took their case to regulators.
Their complaint led to a European Commission investigation in 2010, which revealed similar issues affecting approximately 20 other comparison shopping services, including Kelkoo, Trivago, and Yelp.
The investigation concluded in 2017 with the Commission ruling that Google had illegally promoted its comparison shopping service while demoting competitors, resulting in the €2.4 billion fine.
Here’s a summary of what happened next.
2017
2021
2024 March
September
The seven-year legal process highlights the challenges small businesses face in seeking remedies for anti-competitive practices, despite having clear evidence.
Google maintains its 2017 compliance changes resolved the issues.
A company spokesperson stated:
“The changes we made have worked successfully for more than seven years, generating billions of clicks for more than 800 comparison shopping services.”
While the September 2024 ruling validates the Raffs’ claims, it comes too late for Foundem, which closed in 2016.
In March 2024, the European Commission launched a new investigation into Google’s current practices under the Digital Markets Act.
The Raffs are now pursuing a civil damages claim against Google, scheduled for 2026.
This ruling confirms that Google’s search rankings can be subject to regulatory oversight and legal challenges.
The case has already influenced new digital marketplace regulations, including the EU’s Digital Markets Act.
Although Foundem’s story concluded with the company’s closure in 2016, the legal precedent it set will endure.
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