Google’s technical proposal to the EU: A less disruptive fix to the ad-tech showdown

Google has proposed a set of technical changes to address the European Commission’s antitrust findings about its ad-tech stack, offering a fix intended to reduce disruption for publishers, advertisers and ad-tech partners. Search Engine Land covered this development in its article: https://searchengineland.com/google-offers-a-less-disruptive-fix-to-eu-ad-tech-showdown-464725. The company frames the proposal as a targeted set of product changes designed to meet regulatory concerns without a full structural breakup of its ad technology business.

What Google is proposing

The proposed adjustments focus on the mechanics of how Google’s ad exchange and ad manager work. Key elements include allowing publishers to set different minimum prices (floor prices) for distinct bidders in Google Ad Manager; increasing interoperability between Google products and third-party platforms; ensuring equal treatment for third-party bidders and demand sources; improving transparency around auction mechanics and bid evaluation; and changing supply-path optimization (SPO) practices so they do not unduly favor particular supply paths.

Google’s rationale is straightforward: the company says these technical fixes can address the European Commission’s findings while avoiding a disruptive breakup that could harm the broader ecosystem. As Google put it in its public statement, “Our proposal fully addresses the EC’s decision without a disruptive break-up that would harm the thousands of European publishers and advertisers who rely on our products.” That language frames the changes as surgical and operational rather than structural.

Why these changes matter

At the core of the EU’s concerns is the question of whether Google used its control over multiple links in the ad-tech supply chain to favor its own demand channels and limit competition. The proposed fixes aim to remove or reduce that preferential treatment and restore a more level playing field by focusing on these technical levers:

• Differentiated floor pricing: Publishers can set custom minimum prices for different bidders, which helps them capture more of the true market value for their inventory.
• Interoperability and equal treatment: By opening interfaces and ensuring parity between Google’s demand channels and third parties, the proposal reduces the advantage of using Google’s integrated stack.
• Transparency: Better reporting on how bids are evaluated and winners are chosen enables advertisers to understand auction dynamics and optimize spend.
• Supply-path optimization adjustments: Reworking SPO logic can encourage broader competition among supply partners, increasing the diversity of demand and potentially improving outcomes for publishers.

Immediate implications for publishers

Publishers stand to gain the most immediately from differentiated floor pricing and changes to SPO. Setting distinct floor prices for different buyers allows publishers to tune revenue strategies—charging higher floors for known, higher-quality demand and lower floors to encourage competition from newer or smaller buyers. Changes to SPO can broaden the pool of buyers competing for impressions, which may increase fill rates and push up prices for premium inventory.

Actionable steps for publishers: review existing floor price strategies, run controlled tests with segmented floors (by buyer or demand source), audit the inventory and reporting to ensure auction transparency, and discuss integration timelines with ad ops partners and header-bidding vendors.

What advertisers should prepare for

Advertisers could see improved clarity about how their bids are treated. Greater transparency and equal treatment mean bidding strategies may shift: campaigns that rely on sophisticated bid shading or demand-path advantages could be affected. Advertisers should prioritize monitoring auction reports and updating bid logic to reflect the new parity conditions.

Actionable steps for advertisers: request detailed auction reporting from media partners, re-evaluate bid algorithms under transparent auction rules, and diversify demand sources to avoid over-reliance on any single supply path.

Opportunities for ad-tech vendors

Third-party ad-tech vendors stand to benefit from improved interoperability and equal treatment. If Google opens interfaces and treats external bidders on par with its own demand, vendors can more confidently invest in integrations and product differentiation.

Actionable steps for ad-tech vendors: prioritize building or deepening integrations with Google’s Ad Manager where allowed, create value propositions that highlight transparency and data portability, and prepare to demonstrate parity in capabilities versus Google’s demand channels.

Limitations and what to watch

Technical fixes can narrow specific points of friction, but they are not a guaranteed cure for broader market concentration. Regulators will evaluate whether the proposed measures meaningfully restore competitive conditions. Watch for three things:

1. Regulatory acceptance: The European Commission must determine whether the fixes satisfy its concerns or whether structural remedies are necessary.
2. Enforcement and measurement: Clear metrics and monitoring will be required to ensure Google implements changes that yield real-world competitive outcomes.
3. Market response: Competitors, publishers and advertisers will test the new mechanics. Their behavior will ultimately indicate whether the fixes produce fairer competition.

Practical advice for digital marketers

Take a pragmatic stance: start testing and collecting data now. Set up experiments to measure the impact of segmented floors, request richer auction-level reporting, and preserve flexibility in demand strategies. Maintain close communication between ad ops, programmatic partners and agency teams to react quickly when Google implements changes.

For SEOteric clients and partners, our recommendation is to prioritize measurement and cross-validate revenue impacts so that decisions are data-led rather than reactive.

As regulators and industry participants review Google’s plan, the landscape may shift again. Stay informed, test methodically, and build strategies that can adapt to greater transparency and a more interoperable ad-tech ecosystem.

Attribution: Reporting and coverage from Search Engine Land informed this post: https://searchengineland.com/google-offers-a-less-disruptive-fix-to-eu-ad-tech-showdown-464725. Quote from Google’s public statement: “Our proposal fully addresses the EC’s decision without a disruptive break-up that would harm the thousands of European publishers and advertisers who rely on our products.”