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DOJ To Sue Google Over Digital Ad Market Dominance: Report

By  |  January 24, 2023

The Biden administration is gearing up to take on Google in court over the company’s alleged antitrust violations in the digital advertising market, according to a report.

The Justice Department is expected to file a federal lawsuit against the search engine’s parent company Alphabet Inc. as soon as Tuesday, Bloomberg News reported.

The lawsuit is expected to take an aim at Google’s advertising business, which is responsible for some 80% of its revenue. This year, the company is expected to bring in $73.8 billion in digital ad revenue.

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In addition to its well-known search, which is free, Google makes revenue through its interlocking ad tech businesses, which connect advertisers with newspapers, websites and other firms looking to host them.

Advertisers and website publishers have complained that Google has not been transparent about where ad dollars go, specifically how much goes to publishers and how much to Google.