Poland’s Competition Watchdog Challenges Google Over Payments to News Publishers

Key Takeaways

• Google Faces Antitrust Scrutiny: Poland's competition authority has raised formal objections against four Google group companies over suspected abuse of a dominant market position in negotiations with press publishers.
• Publishers Allegedly Denied Key Information: UOKiK says Google failed to provide data on its use of press publications, associated revenue and the calculations behind its compensation offers.
• Copyright Protections Under Examination: The investigation concerns negotiations under Poland's 2024 copyright amendments, which strengthened publishers' rights to remuneration for the use of their content.
• Potential Fines of Up to 10%: Google could face penalties of up to 10% of an undertaking's turnover if competition law violations are established. No infringement finding or fine has been announced.
• Separate EU Investigation Continues: The European Commission is independently examining Google's use of publishers' content in AI services, while Poland's investigation focuses on Google Search, Google News and Google Discover.

Deep Dive

Poland's competition authority has raised formal objections against four companies in Google's corporate group, alleging that the technology giant may have abused its dominant market position by withholding information from press publishers negotiating payment for the use of their articles.

The Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK) announced the action on October 8, saying Google had failed to provide publishers with the financial and operational information needed to assess its compensation offers. The dispute concerns articles appearing in Google Search, Google News and Google Discover.

Google has not reached agreements with most Polish press publishers governing the use of their publications and the remuneration payable, according to the regulator. UOKiK suspects the company's negotiating practices may have prevented publishers from securing fair terms under copyright protections introduced in 2024.

The objections concern Alphabet, Google, Google Ireland and Google Poland. The proceedings could result in fines of up to 10% of an undertaking's turnover if violations of competition law are established.

The Information Behind the Offer

Poland amended its copyright legislation in 2024 to implement the European Union's Directive on Copyright and Related Rights in the Digital Single Market, known as the DSM Directive. The changes strengthened the rights of press publishers to receive remuneration when online services use their publications. The law also requires platforms to provide information necessary to determine the amount payable. That obligation is at the center of UOKiK's objections.

According to the authority, Google proposed compensation to publishers without disclosing how their publications were being used or how much revenue the company derived from that use. It also allegedly failed to explain the parameters behind its calculations or provide documents that would allow publishers to verify the proposed rates.

The missing information left publishers unable to judge whether the offers were reasonable or prepare counterproposals supported by their own calculations. Tomasz Chróstny, president of UOKiK, said the alleged conduct had undermined the purpose of the negotiations.

“Big Tech companies cannot place themselves above the law,” Chróstny said in the authority's announcement.

He argued that Google's failure to provide the required information had reduced negotiations to a formality, allowing a dominant market participant to impose its preferred terms.

The regulator's concern is not simply that publishers and Google disagree over the value of their content. It is that publishers may have been denied the information they need to negotiate that value in the first place.

Google occupies an important position in the distribution of online news. Publishers rely on its services to reach readers, but they do not have comparable access to information about the commercial value their articles generate for the platform. UOKiK believes that imbalance may have allowed Google to impose remuneration terms that publishers had little meaningful opportunity to challenge.

Holding a dominant market position is not unlawful under competition rules. Using that position to impose unfair conditions on other businesses can be. The authority is examining whether Google's conduct falls into the latter category.

A Dispute Over the Value of Journalism

The proceedings come as publishers contend with changes in how readers encounter their reporting through search engines and other digital services. UOKiK pointed to the growing tendency of users to read article excerpts in search results or rely on AI-generated summaries rather than visit the websites where the reporting originally appeared.

For publishers, fewer visits can mean less advertising revenue. Meanwhile, platforms displaying their material may continue to earn revenue from advertising alongside search results and other content. The Polish regulator identified that economic relationship as part of the rationale for the 2024 copyright amendments. The legislation was intended to give publishers greater leverage when negotiating payment for material used by online services.

Yet the existence of a legal right to remuneration does not resolve how that remuneration should be calculated.

That is where the disclosure requirements become important. Without reliable information about how publications are used and the revenue associated with that use, publishers cannot readily assess the offers made to them. UOKiK suspects Google's negotiating practices may have prevented the compensation mechanism established by Polish law from functioning as intended.

UOKiK is not a party to the negotiations and will not determine whether Google's proposed remuneration is appropriate. Under Polish law, the president of the Office of Electronic Communications may set the amount payable when publishers and platforms cannot reach an agreement.

The competition investigation instead concerns whether Google exploited its market position during those negotiations. The four companies named in the proceedings have different roles within Google's corporate structure. Alphabet Inc. is the group's parent company, while Google LLC previously operated and managed Google Search in the European Economic Area and provides advertising services.

Google Ireland Limited currently operates and manages the search engine in the EEA. Google Poland is involved in selling online advertising space. UOKiK said each company's potential liability will be examined during the proceedings.

Separate Scrutiny in Brussels

The Polish case is proceeding independently of a European Commission investigation into Google's use of publishers' content in artificial intelligence services. The Commission opened formal proceedings in December 2025 to examine whether Google uses publishers' material in AI-based services without appropriate remuneration or an opportunity for publishers to object. Although both investigations concern Google's use of third-party content, they address different practices.

The Commission's proceedings focus on artificial intelligence services. UOKiK's investigation concerns negotiations over the use of press publications in Google Search, Google News and Google Discover. The Polish authority said the difference between the investigations was agreed with the European Commission before its own proceedings began. Google is also one of several major technology companies facing competition scrutiny in Poland.

UOKiK said its antitrust proceedings against Apple are in their final stage. That investigation concerns suspicions that Apple may have disadvantaged publishers of competing mobile applications under the guise of protecting user privacy. The regulator is also conducting preliminary proceedings concerning Meta and changes to how links to press publications are displayed on its services.

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