In a recent blog post, Google articulated its commitment to enhancing user experience by providing rich and relevant information for searches while also bolstering the visibility of ecosystem participants.

One notable feature soon to be introduced is the rich results carousel, designed for queries related to travel, local services, and shopping. This carousel-style display will enable users to horizontally scroll through tiles showcasing additional information like prices, ratings, and images. However, its visibility depends on web pages incorporating the appropriate structured data markup.

Google is also introducing aggregator units and refinement chips to streamline search results. These features will provide direct links to content from aggregator websites and allow users to narrow down results to specific types of content, such as places, jobs, flights, and products.

Furthermore, Google is testing a separate search feature for flight-related queries, displaying airline website results in a dedicated unit for easier access to flight details.

These enhancements are exclusively available to users in the European Economic Area (EEA) to comply with the Digital Markets Act (DMA), new EU legislation aimed at regulating large technology companies designated as “gatekeepers” due to their market dominance.

As part of its compliance efforts, Google is inviting EEA-based companies or those serving EEA users to express interest in these new search features through a designated form. These changes align with the DMA’s objectives, which include providing users with more choice over default apps and services, allowing alternative app stores, mandating interoperability between messaging services, banning self-preferencing in rankings, requiring consent for targeted ads, and improving data transparency.

Google, along with other designated gatekeepers, will need to adjust its products to meet the requirements outlined in the DMA. As the enforcement date approaches, companies have a six-month transition period before the legislation fully takes effect, reshaping the digital market landscape in the EU significantly.