US judge determines that Google maintains unlawful monopolies in advertising technology

A judge ruled on Thursday that Google unlawfully controls two markets for online advertising technology, delivering another setback to the tech giant and setting the stage for U.S. antitrust prosecutors to pursue a separation of its ad products.

U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema, based in Alexandria, Virginia, determined that Google was responsible for “deliberately obtaining and sustaining monopoly power” in the markets for publisher ad servers and the ad exchanges that connect buyers and sellers.

The ruling opens a new avenue for a subsequent hearing to assess what actions Google must take to revive competition in those markets, including potentially divesting parts of its business in a trial that is still to be scheduled. This is the second court decision declaring that Google has an unlawful monopoly, following a comparable ruling in a case regarding internet search.

Publisher ad servers are systems utilized by websites to store and oversee their digital advertising inventory. In conjunction with ad exchanges, the technology enables news publishers and various online content providers to generate revenue through ad sales. Brinkema stated that those funds are the “lifeblood” of the internet.

“In addition to depriving rivals of the ability to compete, this exclusionary conduct substantially harmed Google’s publisher customers, the competitive process, and, ultimately, consumers of information on the open web,” Brinkema wrote.

However, antitrust enforcers failed to prove a separate claim that the company had a monopoly in advertiser ad networks, she wrote.

U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi called the ruling “a landmark victory in the ongoing fight to stop Google from monopolizing the digital public square.”

“This Department of Justice will continue taking bold legal action to protect the American people from encroachments on free speech and free markets by tech companies,” she said.

Lee-Anne Mulholland, vice president of regulatory affairs, said Google will appeal the ruling.

“We won half of this case and we will appeal the other half,” she said, adding that the company disagrees with the decision on its publisher tools. “Publishers have many options and they choose Google because our ad tech tools are simple, affordable and effective.”