Antitrust Trial Targeting Google’s Digital Ad Business to Begin Monday

A month after losing a landmark antitrust case, Google will reportedly face another antitrust trial that targets its digital advertising business.

In a trial set to begin Monday (Sept. 9) in Alexandria, Virginia, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and a coalition of states allege that Google keeps competitors out of advertising technology markets and harms news publishers, Reuters reported Wednesday (Sept. 4).

If the plaintiffs win this lawsuit, they could ask the judge to order a breakup of Google, according to the report.

Google has denied the plaintiffs’ claims, saying that it doesn’t have to share its technology with rivals and that its products are interoperable with those of its competitors, according to the report.

The tech giant added that the plaintiffs’ narrow focus on website ads ignores the competition it faces in the growing advertising categories of social media, streaming TV and apps, per the report.

The DOJ and eight states filed the suit in January 2023, saying Google has illegally seized control of the online ad sector and that the solution is for a court to order the breakup of the digital search giant.

“Having inserted itself into all aspects of the digital advertising marketplace, Google has used anticompetitive, exclusionary and unlawful means to eliminate or severely diminish any threat to its dominance over digital advertising technologies,” the DOJ said in the suit.

Google responded to the suit by saying the government was “doubling down on a flawed” argument that would hurt small businesses and drive up advertising fees.

“Today’s lawsuit from the DOJ attempts to pick winners and losers in the highly competitive advertising technology sector,” a Google spokesperson said at the time in a statement issued to PYMNTS.

In another antitrust case that was decided Aug. 5, a judge concluded that Google’s business practices violated antitrust laws, specifically the Sherman Act, by maintaining and abusing its monopoly power in the search and search advertising markets.

The company plans to appeal that ruling, Kent Walker, president, global affairs at Google, said at the time in a statement emailed to PYMNTS.

“This decision recognizes that Google offers the best search engine, but concludes that we shouldn’t be allowed to make it easily available,” Walker said.