Ads feel inescapable. Signing on to a streaming platform usually means signing up to see a glut of ads, especially during breaks in the desired programming. Watch a YouTube video? Here’s an ad. Scroll a website or read an article? Another one.

But one advertising platform has long held a monopoly over digital ads. For years, Google has been accused of unfairly dominating the online advertising space, using its Ad Manager technology to attract websites. The software has the capacity to place the most profitable advertisement on a page immediately, each time a user loads something new. The U.S. Department of Justice has decided to begin cracking down on this dominance though, after accusing Google of exploiting its control over advertising technology to charge higher prices to both advertisers and websites. Prosecutors have filed similar antitrust suits against Apple, Amazon, and Meta.

Google claims that the suit fails to account for the advertising revenue generated by social media and mobile apps, channels in which the company does not have as significant an advantage. Google also claims that the case ignores the scale of advertising money paid to online retailers, like Amazon. Despite these arguments, a judge ruled in the government’s favor, initiating a second trial to determine the appropriate solution. Experts suggest that it could require a sale of the ad technology that Google has acquired previously, which would force a significant shift in its advertising model.

This ruling also paves the way for other antitrust cases, setting a tougher precedent for tech companies to beat. Still, the second trial is expected to be lengthy, with potential further appeals pushing new regulations out years.

Discussion Questions 

1. Should all online advertisement revenue be used to determine a company’s market share?
2. How might technology companies drag out the antitrust proceedings, buying themselves more time without official regulations? 

Sources: David McCabe, “U.S. Prepares to Challenge Google’s Online Ad Dominance,” The New York Times, September 9, 2024; David Shepardson and Mike Scarcella, “Google Has an Illegal Monopoly On Search, US Judge Finds,” Reuters, August 6, 2024; Matthew Barakat, “Google Expert at Antitrust Trial Says Government Underestimates Competition for Online Ad Dollars,” Associated Press, September 26, 2024