Google Details European Search Data Licensing for Competitors

Image credit: Search Engine Journal

Google updated its European Search Dataset Licensing Program documentation Friday, outlining how competitors can license anonymized search data in the European Economic Area (EEA) to comply with the Digital Markets Act.

The detailed plan implements a July decision by the European Commission, which mandated Google to share specific search data with qualifying rivals, including developers of artificial intelligence chatbots, to foster greater competition.

The updated documentation specifies eligibility criteria, available data samples, audit procedures and critical deadlines for the licensing program, according to Google.

To qualify, applicants must operate as online search engines under the Digital Markets Act and primarily target users within the EEA. Furthermore, they must not be controlled by state actors outside the EEA.

Eligible entities also need to demonstrate a minimum of 50,000 monthly active users in the European Union or have operated search services for at least two years. Alternatively, applicants can qualify if they have received more than 50 million euros in capital investment.

Google stated that it plans to dispatch licensing agreements to eligible applicants starting Sept. 17, with initial data samples becoming available from Nov. 16.

Access to a 5 percent sample of the full dataset and the complete dataset itself will require an independent Level 1 audit report. However, smaller samples, including a free 1,000-row sample and a synthetic 10 million query dataset, can be accessed without an initial audit, allowing for preliminary examination before incurring audit costs.

Recipients of the data must agree to ongoing monitoring by Google. They are also required to submit regular Level 2 reports to ensure that their data protection controls are functioning effectively, according to the program’s terms.

The first Level 2 report will be due within six months of data access, with subsequent reports required annually thereafter.

Source: Search Engine Journal