# EU e-commerce regulatory and digital landscape shifts

> Live situation record from CLSTR: https://clstr.news/situations/eu-e-commerce-regulatory-and-digital-landscape-shifts
> Updated: 2026-10-17T04:05:00.000Z. Sources: 6. Developments: 2.

E-commerce businesses in the European Economic Area (EEA) are navigating significant regulatory and technical shifts. In September 2026, Google restructured its Shopping search results to comply with the Digital Markets Act, resulting in the near-total removal of product carousels and grids across the EEA. This change replaced direct product tiles with lists of shops and price comparison services, a move that data suggests caused visibility declines of 90 to 100 percent for certain product types.

Parallel to these search engine changes, online sellers are also managing evolving EU general product safety regulations. These rules require the display of specific manufacturer and safety information on product pages to avoid sanctions. Additionally, the digital marketing landscape has been impacted by Google’s decision regarding third-party cookies, prompting businesses to shift focus toward proprietary data collection.

## Timeline

### 2026-10-17: E-commerce businesses face new EU regulations and shifting digital marketing standards

French e-commerce businesses must navigate new EU product safety regulations and shifting digital advertising standards following Google’s decision regarding third-party cookies.

2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/e-commerce-businesses-face-new-eu-regulations-and-shifting-digital-marketing-standards

### 2026-09-18: Google removes Shopping product carousels in the EEA

Google has removed product carousels from Shopping search results in the EEA to comply with the Digital Markets Act, causing visibility for some retailers to drop by up to 100 percent.

4 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/google-removes-shopping-product-carousels-in-the-eea

---
Cite as: EU e-commerce regulatory and digital landscape shifts. CLSTR, https://clstr.news/situations/eu-e-commerce-regulatory-and-digital-landscape-shifts
