🏛️ Google is on trial again.
Justice Department Argues Google Created a Monopoly Over Online Advertising Technology
Just one month after a judge declared Google’s search engine an illegal monopoly, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) has now accused Google of creating a huge monopoly in the online advertising industry.
The current trial focuses on Google's control of the ad tech market which involves displaying ads online, like the ones you see at the top or sides of web pages. The DOJ along with 17 states, argues that Google controls nearly every part of this business including selling ad space, managing ad content and matching advertisers with publishers. Google’s share of this market is said to be around 90%, and the DOJ claims Google takes about 37 cents of every advertising dollar.
According to the DOJ, Google has been shutting out competitors and raising costs for both publishers and advertisers in order to increase its own profits. This trial is part of a broader effort by the government to challenge the dominance of big tech companies like Google, Amazon, Meta, and Apple.
Google disagrees.
Karen Dunn, an attorney representing Google, argued that the tech giant doesn’t have a monopoly but instead offers a better product in a competitive market. She said that Google’s innovations have helped grow the entire ad industry. Dunn also said the government doesn’t fully understand the ad tech business and is using arguments that don’t reflect reality.
Dunn emphasized that Google competes against many companies including Microsoft, Amazon, Meta, and TikTok, and losing this case would mostly benefit those competitors. She also pointed out that technology is evolving quickly, especially with artificial intelligence, and the government's arguments seem outdated.
Do you think that Google has a monopoly in this case of ad tech? Leave a comment below.