The UK’s competition watchdog (the CMA) has announced plans to limit how much control Google has over online search in the UK. The CMA says Google has around 90% of the search market here, and that businesses spent over £10bn on Google search advertising last year.
The CMA’s view is: when one company dominates the “front door” to the internet, it can shape what people see, what businesses pay to be seen, and how information is used.
They’re now consulting on a set of new rules, with feedback due by 25 February 2026.
The three changes the CMA is pushing for
1) Google’s AI answers: “You can’t take content without giving credit”
Google now often shows an AI-written summary at the top of results (AI Overviews). The CMA wants:
- Clearer credit to the original sources used in those summaries
- More control for publishers, including the ability to opt out of having their content used for AI summaries (without being punished in normal search)
Why that matters: if people get the answer on Google, they may not click through to the original website – and that can hurt publishers and businesses that rely on website traffic.
2) Making it easier to switch away from Google
The CMA also wants “choice screens” on Android phones and Chrome, so people can more easily pick a different search engine instead of Google being the default.
3) “Prove you’re being fair”
Google may be required to show that it ranks results fairly and transparently, especially where Google’s own services could benefit.
My take: this is about power, not politics
Most business owners don’t wake up thinking about competition law. They wake up thinking:
- “How do I get more leads?”
- “Why did my enquiries drop?”
- “Why are ads getting more expensive?”
This CMA move matters because it’s aimed at the parts of search that can quietly change your results overnight: AI summaries, defaults, and how rankings work.
The AI bit is the big one
If Google answers the question for the user, fewer people click. That’s not theory – it’s already happening in a lot of sectors.
So the CMA pushing for proper credit and real choice for publishers is basically saying:
“If you’re going to use other people’s work to create answers, you can’t do it in a way that drains value from the websites that created it.”
That’s not anti-Google. That’s basic fairness.
Choice screens sound boring, but they’re a genuine lever
If switching is easy, Google has to keep earning trust and loyalty. If switching is hard, the market stays locked. Defaults shape behaviour more than most people realise.
What should a normal business do about this?
You don’t need to panic. You do need to be less dependent on a single channel.
1) Build visibility that doesn’t disappear if Google changes the page
If all your enquiries rely on “ranking well on Google”, you’re exposed. You want a mix that reinforces itself:
- SEO (steady long-term demand)
- PPC (short-term certainty and testing)
- Digital PR (authority and trust)
A website that converts (so you don’t waste the traffic you already have)
2) Make your website easy to trust at a glance
AI search and traditional search both reward the same thing: clear, credible information. That means:
- obvious services
- real proof (reviews, case studies, accreditations where relevant)
- clear next steps (call, enquiry, booking)
3) Measure what matters now
If you can’t see where enquiries come from, you can’t protect them. Tracking should tell you: calls, forms, bookings and lead quality – not just clicks.
Bottom line
The CMA is signalling that search is changing, and it wants more control and fairness around AI answers, defaults, and ranking transparency.
For EI clients, the play isn’t “wait and see”. It’s: build a digital ecosystem where visibility and enquiries don’t depend on one company’s layout decisions.
