Google has ended a test in the European Union where it displayed basic "blue link" search results for hotel-related searches, instead of its usual visually richer results, in response to compliance complaints related to the bloc's Digital Markets Act (DMA).

The test, which was conducted in a handful of EU markets, aimed to assess the impact of reviving plain blue link-style search results on hotels and users. According to Google's Oliver Bethell, director of legal, the results of the test indicate that this approach is detrimental to hotels, causing a more than 10% decline in traffic, and making it harder for travelers to find and book accommodations directly.

Bethell also claimed that the test did not result in a significant increase in traffic to comparison websites that aggregate hotel rooms, which has been a point of contention between Google and these intermediary sites. The latter have argued that Google's rich search results, which include thumbnail photos, price information, and map locations, unfairly compete with their services and discourage users from using vertical search services.

The stakes are high for Google, as confirmed breaches of the DMA could lead to penalties of up to 10% of its global annual turnover. The European Commission is currently investigating Google's compliance with the DMA, specifically looking into allegations of self-preferencing, where Google prioritizes its own services over those of rivals.

Google has been pushing back against complaints that it's not playing by the EU's rules, framing DMA compliance as an inconvenience for users. The company suggests that it's being forced to degrade the quality of search results for local users in order to avoid preferencing its own services above rival comparison sites.

The blue links test was seen as another manifestation of Google's anti-DMA lobbying, allowing the company to claim it now has data to back up its contention that European search result quality is being forcibly wound back to the web 1.0 era due to regulatory overreach.

However, the test's results may not sway public opinion or impress the regulation's enforcers, given the small scale of the test and Google's control over the experiment. The wider issue of how to apply the DMA to a dominant search tool like Google, without introducing friction or negative knock-on impacts for European consumers and businesses, remains a pressing concern.

The European Commission's investigation into Google's DMA compliance is ongoing, with no preliminary findings announced yet. In contrast, the Commission has reached preliminary conclusions in two other DMA cases, involving Apple's App Store and Meta's forced consent, and has seen movement from the tech giants on their respective compliance approaches.

Google's continued push-back against DMA complaints and its framing of the regulation as harming, rather than helping, European consumers suggest that the company is still holding out for an opportunity to shape a less costly interpretation of the rules for its search business. This could avoid a scenario where Google search in the EU is forced to become a "blue links" dumb pipe, stripping away its rich features.

In a blog post, Bethell argued that to comply with the DMA, Google has already made significant changes that have diverted traffic from hotels to intermediaries, effectively raising prices for consumers. He warned of a "lose-lose situation" for European users and businesses if Google is forced to remove its "helpful features" altogether.

The European Commission has been contacted for a response to Google's blog post, but has yet to comment. The outcome of the investigation and the implications for Google's search business in the EU remain to be seen.