“Well-Established Case” Against Google’s Monopoly, Says Former CMA Director

There is a “very well-established case” for taking action against Google’s monopoly position, according to a former legal director at the UK’s competition watchdog. This statement comes as the Competition and Market Authority (CMA) officially designated Google with “strategic market status,” a move that legally empowers the regulator to follow the lead of the US and EU in tackling the company’s dominance.
Tom Smith, now a competition lawyer at Geradin Partners, praised the decision as a crucial step. His comments underscore the long-standing concerns among regulators and legal experts about the market distortions caused by Google’s control over search. The new “strategic market status” (SMS) designation, based on Google’s 90%+ UK market share, finally gives the CMA the teeth to act on these concerns.
The CMA is now able to order changes to how Google operates. The authority is considering several remedies, including the introduction of “choice screens” to give consumers an easy way to switch to rival search engines. It also aims to ensure fair ranking practices and to provide publishers with more control over how their content is used, especially in Google’s emerging AI products.
Google has warned that such interventions could be detrimental to the UK’s innovation landscape, potentially delaying the launch of new services. This sets up a classic confrontation between the tech giant’s defense of its business model and the regulator’s mandate to promote a competitive market.
With the legal authority now firmly in place, the CMA will proceed with a consultation on specific measures later this year. The strong backing from former insiders like Tom Smith suggests that the regulator is on solid legal ground as it prepares to reshape the UK’s digital search market.