Czech Court Awards Heureka 10M EUR from Google for Market Exclusion

The Prague Municipal Court has awarded Heureka (price comparison site) 250 million korunas (10M EUR) in damages, plus interest, from Google for the U.S. internet company’s unlawful exclusion of Heureka from the market. A report published Thursday by Hospodářské noviny (HN) was confirmed today to ČTK by court spokeswoman Julie Haluzová. The court’s verdict is not final; an appeal may be filed. According to the website, Heureka welcomed the court’s decision, while Google declined to comment on the dispute.

“At the hearing on August 25, 2026, a judgment was handed down ordering the defendant to pay the plaintiff 250,000,000 CZK, plus statutory default interest at a rate of ten percent per annum on this amount from June 25, 2020, until payment is made. As for the amount of 144,857,000 CZK plus interest and other charges, the claim was dismissed,” Haluzová stated.

According to HN, the dispute stemmed from Google’s 2013 launch of the Google Shopping price comparison tool, which gave Google an advantage over its competitors in search results. According to the website, the Prague court based its ruling on an earlier decision by the European Commission, which imposed a fine of 2.42 billion euros (over 60 billion crowns at the time) on Google, part of the Alphabet group, for abusing its dominant position in the price comparison market. The European Court of Justice also upheld the decision to impose the fine two years ago.

According to the Prague court, it was not possible to determine the amount of damages even if further extensive evidence had been presented. This is because it is impossible to determine how people would have behaved had Google not acted as it did. The court therefore relied on a law under which damages can be estimated and determined based on the principles of equitable consideration. In its lawsuit, Heureka sought approximately 395 million crowns. According to HN, the awarded damages also include interest amounting to roughly 150 million crowns.

According to the website, Google argued in court that Heureka’s claim was time-barred; however, the ruling stated that, based on the case law of the European Court of Justice, the statute of limitations for damages resulting from a violation of competition law cannot begin to run until the unlawful conduct has completely ceased and the injured party has obtained the necessary information to file a lawsuit.

Heureka Group spokesperson Ondřej Šveda told HN that the company welcomes the Prague court’s decision. “Google’s actions have indeed affected the operations of Heureka, other price comparison sites on the market, and, ultimately, Czech consumers. This is not just about this one case—the court’s decision is a clear signal that there must be a level playing field for all players in e-commerce and that consumers deserve a wide and free choice,” said Šveda.

Google declined to comment on the dispute for HN. Alžběta Housarová, a spokesperson for its branch, did not say whether the company would appeal the ruling. “In 2017, we implemented changes that have been working successfully for nine years,” the spokesperson said. “We fundamentally disagree with similar lawsuits filed by companies seeking financial compensation instead of investing in their own products,” she added.