Google Challenges Government Push to Split Up Its Ad Tech Business
Google, a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc., is set to argue in court on Friday that dismantling its advertising technology division is an excessive and unjustified response to concerns raised by U.S. regulators about its dominance in the digital ad market.
U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema, based in Alexandria, Virginia, will oversee the hearing. The purpose is to explore potential solutions for reviving healthy competition in the digital advertising space, where Google plays a central role.
This hearing will help set the stage for more detailed proceedings aimed at determining concrete regulatory actions.
Google is trying to prevent the case from progressing to the point reached in another antitrust lawsuit in Washington.
There, the DOJ is pushing for the company to sell off its Chrome browser as a remedy to its control over online search. In this instance, Google wants to convince Brinkema that a forced breakup of its ad tech tools is not warranted under existing legal standards.
The tech company argues that the DOJ’s proposed course of action—especially the idea of selling off parts of its ad technology infrastructure—is excessive. Google maintains that its tools serve purposes beyond basic ad sales, making a separation both unnecessary and disruptive.
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Avoiding a Repeat of the Chrome Browser Case
According to the Department of Justice, a minimum requirement should be the divestment of Google Ad Manager, which includes both its ad exchange and publisher ad server.
These technologies are key to how online publishers manage advertising slots and connect with buyers in real time.
In a ruling issued last month, Judge Brinkema found that Google violated antitrust laws by linking the use of its ad server to its ad exchange. She determined the company had adopted strategies that stifled competition and placed publishers at a disadvantage.
“The conduct harmed competition, and hurt publishers and ultimately internet users,” she wrote. She added that such policies were “not in its publisher customers’ best interests.”
Previously, in an effort to satisfy European regulators, Google considered offloading its ad exchange unit, according to a September report by Reuters. That development hinted at the company’s acknowledgment of growing international scrutiny of its market power.
What emerges from the current Virginia case could influence how aggressively U.S. authorities move to impose structural changes on dominant tech firms in the future.
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