The European regulators are scrutinizing Alphabet’s Google and Elon Musk’s social media platform X.

Both firms could soon face huge fines for failing to adopt crucial EU legislation, with investigations intensifying, according to sources familiar with the matter.

The steps reflect the European Union’s increasing resolve to curb the power of Big Tech—even if it risks a political backlash with the United States.

The first wave of enforcement came earlier this week. Apple and Meta were hit with landmark fines of €500 million (about $566 million) and €200 million (about $226 million) by the European Commission under its groundbreaking Digital Markets Act (DMA). This measure, which fully went into effect in 2024, applies to large tech firms that exert overwhelming control over digital marketplaces.

Apple was fined for barring app developers from directing users to more competitive or alternative services outside its App Store, a practice that regulators say quashes fair competition.

Meanwhile, the commission said Meta breached the DMA,  what the authorities called its “pay or consent” policy, which placed a choice behind a paywall for Facebook and Instagram users, requiring them to either consent to targeted advertising or pay a fee for a subscription to avoid it.

The EU’s antitrust chief, Teresa Ribera, said the companies had failed to adhere to the rules in the Digital Markets Act by cementing users’ dependence on their platforms.

The two companies have two months to change or delete the data. If they fail to do so, the EU could levy greater fines or even tougher measures.

Regulators target Google in antitrust case

The European Commission is also targeting Google’s sprawling advertising empire. For years, critics have accused Google of abusing its dominance by giving undue preference to its ad services over competing services.

European Union officials are now contemplating a radical step: requiring Google to sell off pieces of its ad tech business.

If the Commission moves forward, this would be the first time it ordered a company to split a business unit to rectify anti-competitive behavior. Even in its long-running legal skirmishes with Microsoft, the EU never pressed for such an action.

The pressure comes as U.S. authorities now are also turning up the heat. A federal judge recently ruled that Google has illegal monopolies in two major digital ad markets. That ruling is likely to embolden EU regulators.

Zach Meyers, research director at the Centre on Regulation in Europe (CERRE), said the U.S. ruling strongly justifies the Commission’s bolder action. He added that it would be hard to justify stepping back at this point.

X, which Musk purchased in 2022, has already received warnings from the Commission about its transparency and speed in removing harmful posts. The EU is still wrapping up its investigation and will likely make a ruling — and possibly a fine — in the coming months.

EU holds firm despite U.S. pressure

The move comes at a politically fraught moment. U.S. President Donald Trump and other American leaders have branded the EU’s targeting of U.S. tech as biased. Trump has even suggested new tariffs on European countries in retaliation.

But Commissioner Ribera says the EU will resist that pressure. 

“The rules were clear, she said, and the EU would not sacrifice its laws because of foreign threats. All companies working in the region were “subject to European rules,” she said.

Regulators are more interested in compliance in the long term than punishment in the near term. The commission notes that the fines themselves are reasonable, but the larger objective is to unlock the companies’ systems and create competition.

Meyers of CERRE said the problem was not solely about money, arguing that the DMA was about altering how digital markets function by giving users real options and allowing smaller companies to compete.

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