They got left behind.
Switzerland’s competition regulator has opened a preliminary probe into Google. Why? Because the tech giant pulled a plug. Specifically. The plug that lets Swiss users pick their default search engine during Android setup is gone. EU users? They still have it.
WEKO—Switzerland’s acronym for its competition commission—is looking into it. Tuesday’s announcement stated clearly what the issue is.
The “Choice Screen.” It vanished.
Default settings play a huge role here. Eliminate this feature. You restrict competitors. You build barriers.
WEKO isn’t sure if this violates cartel law yet. That’s why they’re probing. But the concern is real. Search engines that aren’t Google rely on this visibility during setup. No screen means no eye contact with the customer.
So why Switzerland?
It’s about jurisdiction. Or rather, the lack of it.
Switzerland isn’t in the EU. Not the EEA either. The Digital Markets Act (DMA)? It doesn’t reach Swiss soil.
The Choice Screen started as an EU remedy. Back in 2020. A settlement. Google agreed to show the screen on every new Android device sold to the EEA or the UK. Simple.
Then the DMA hit. Gatekeepers must show options. Let people switch defaults. Easy.
Google became a gatekeeper last year. By March 2024, they had expanded screens to comply.
But none of that binds them here.
Officials didn’t expect to need these rules domestically. In 2023, the Interdepartmental Coordination Group did some math. They decided large platforms wouldn’t bother splitting systems for just Switzerland. Too expensive. Too messy. So EU rules would effectively bleed over anyway. Users would get the protection without the law.
Google proved them wrong.
Legislative gaps?
There is a platform law coming. A Federal Act on Communication Platforms and Search Engine is in the works. Consultation started late last year, wrapped up in February 2025.
It won’t save this specific situation. The bill mimics the EU’s Digital Services Act. Content moderation. Transparency. Not default settings.
When does it pass Parliament? Late 2026. Maybe early 2027 if they move fast.
For now. WEKO looks at the facts. The screen is gone. The assumption failed. Now they check for a formal competition case.
Will Swiss users pay the price for a border line drawn twenty years ago?
