The US Department of Justice won its case against Google after a three-week trial. The court decided Google broke antitrust laws through its advertising technology practices. Judge Leonie Brinkema ruled Google violated the Sherman Antitrust Act by keeping monopolies in ad exchanges and publisher ad servers. Google also illegally tied products together to block competitors from entering the market.
It was only a partial victory for regulators since claims about Google dominating the ad network space were rejected. Google plans to appeal parts of the decision it disagrees with. Their VP of Regulatory Affairs defended their publisher tools, saying companies choose Google because the technology works well and delivers results. The court did agree that Google's advertiser tools and past acquisitions like DoubleClick do not harm competition.
Both sides must meet again to determine penalties for these violations. The Justice Department wants Google to sell off parts of its business, possibly including the Chrome browser. The final penalties could reshape how Google operates and impact the entire tech industry. Regulators continue targeting large tech companies to prevent anti-competitive behavior and maintain fair markets.
It was only a partial victory for regulators since claims about Google dominating the ad network space were rejected. Google plans to appeal parts of the decision it disagrees with. Their VP of Regulatory Affairs defended their publisher tools, saying companies choose Google because the technology works well and delivers results. The court did agree that Google's advertiser tools and past acquisitions like DoubleClick do not harm competition.
Both sides must meet again to determine penalties for these violations. The Justice Department wants Google to sell off parts of its business, possibly including the Chrome browser. The final penalties could reshape how Google operates and impact the entire tech industry. Regulators continue targeting large tech companies to prevent anti-competitive behavior and maintain fair markets.
