May 6, 2025

Google Faces Trial Over Ad Tech Monopoly as DOJ Pushes for Breakup 🧩

The U.S. government is ramping up efforts to break up Google’s dominance in online advertising, with a federal judge setting a “remedies trial” for September 22 to explore whether parts of Google’s ad business should be dismantled.

🔹 Key Developments:

  • Judge Leonie Brinkema will decide if the DOJ can force Google to spin off core ad products like Ad Manager and Google Ad Exchange
  • Google had tried to block divestiture as a remedy — and failed

🔹 Why This Matters:

  • The DOJ argues Google tied together its tools to create an illegal monopoly that hurt advertisers and publishers
  • This case follows a separate 2023 ruling where Google was found guilty of monopolizing the search market, with possible breakups of Chrome and Android still on the table

🔹 Google’s Pushback:

  • The company claims forced divestitures go beyond legal limits and would hurt the very publishers and advertisers the DOJ claims to protect
  • Google’s VP of Regulatory Affairs called the DOJ’s proposals “unfounded and harmful”

🔹 What Experts Say:

“Google went for a kill shot — and missed,” said Daniel McCuaig, a former DOJ antitrust attorney
He added the DOJ may prefer splitting the businesses between different buyers to restore market competition

📌 Google’s acquisition of DoubleClick was originally approved in 2007 — but now forms the crux of the DOJ’s structural remedy argument.

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