On December 23, 2024, Ceneo.pl, a leading Polish price comparison platform and a subsidiary of Allegro Group, filed a lawsuit against Google Ireland Limited, Alphabet Inc., and Google LLC in the Warsaw District Court. The lawsuit seeks PLN 2.33 billion in damages for alleged anti-competitive practices that favored Google’s price comparison service in search results.
According to Ceneo, these practices have caused significant financial losses to the company, amounting to approximately PLN 1.716 billion, with an additional PLN 615 million in interest accrued from 2013 to November 2024. The company is also demanding statutory interest on the total amount until full payment is made.
The lawsuit references a 2017 European Commission decision, upheld by the European Court of Justice in September 2024, which found Google guilty of abusing its dominant position by reducing traffic to rival comparison services, including Ceneo, in favor of Google Shopping.
This legal battle follows a March 2024 ruling by the Warsaw District Court that prohibited Google from prioritizing its price comparison service and displaying unauthorized ads for Ceneo in search results. The ruling was described as a precedent in Europe, encouraging other comparison platforms to take similar actions to ensure a fair digital marketplace.
Ceneo emphasizes that the dispute solely pertains to its operations and does not affect other entities within the Allegro Group.
Google, which holds a dominant market share of 90% in global search and 95% on mobile devices, faces similar legal challenges worldwide. Courts and regulatory bodies in the U.S. and Canada have also sought measures to curb Google’s monopolistic practices, including proposed divestitures of key assets.
This case adds to the growing global scrutiny of tech giants and their competitive practices in the digital economy.