In a surprising turn of events, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is escalating its battle with Google. Their proposal would require the tech behemoth to divest two of its ad products as part of a landmark antitrust lawsuit. This proposal comes on the heels of a judge’s ruling which found that Google monopolizes the online search market. The DOJ’s recent action seeks to promote competition among the digital advertising ecosystem.
In response to the DOJ’s worries, Google has filed its own slate of proposed remedies. These measures comprise making its AdX real-time bidding system available to all third party ad servers. Per its settlement with the Department of Justice, Google agreed to have an independent compliance observer monitor its activities. This oversight will occur for three years!
Despite Google’s proposed solutions, the DOJ continues to push for the divestiture of its Chrome browser, a key product in Google’s suite of services. The agency’s position is that the only way to break up the market is through a divestiture of epic proportions.
“This comprehensive set of remedies—including divestiture of Google’s unlawfully obtained monopolies and the products that were the principal instruments of Google’s illegal scheme—is necessary to terminate Google’s monopolies, deny Google the fruits of its violations, reintroduce competition into the ad exchange and publisher ad server markets, and guard against reoccurrence in the future,” – The DOJ’s filing.
Lee-Anne Mulholland, a spokesperson for Google, responded to the DOJ’s demands, stating, “The DOJ conceded Google’s proposed ad tech remedy fully addresses the Court’s decision on liability. The DOJ’s additional proposals to force a divestiture of our ad tech tools go well beyond the Court’s findings, have no basis in law, and would harm publishers and advertisers.”
Ivan, a correspondent covering global consumer tech developments at TechCrunch, highlighted that this ongoing legal battle reflects broader concerns about market fairness and competition in technology. Now based out of India, Ivan has written for publications like the Huffington Post and The Next Web in the past.
So save the date for June 5, in beautiful Berkeley, California. Attendees can now book their spots to engage with industry leaders discussing the future of artificial intelligence and its implications on technology.
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