The U.S. Department of Justice claims that Google holds a monopoly in three different markets related to online advertising. Google’s new antitrust trial, concerning online advertising technology, began on Monday. On the first day, the Department of Justice alleged that Google has a monopoly in three distinct online advertising markets, accusing the tech giant of a “triple monopoly.” However, both sides of this legal dispute—Google and the Department of Justice—believe the other is seeking more control. According to The Verge, both Google and the U.S. Department of Justice think the other party wants excessive “control.” The government argues that Google exerts too much control over every stage of the online advertising space. Google, on the other hand, claims that the government is attempting to control a successful business by forcing it to deal with competitors on more favorable terms. The company denies being a monopoly and considers the Department of Justice’s accusations baseless.
Google’s Monopoly and the Legal Dispute with the U.S. Department of Justice
The Department of Justice argues that Google has created a monopoly in three different markets related to advertising: the “Publisher Ad Servers” market, where websites manage their ad space; the “Ad Exchanges,” which facilitate ad transactions; and the “Advertiser Ad Networks,” which advertisers must use to buy ad space. The Department of Justice also claims that Google has illegally linked its publisher ad server with its ad exchange to maintain its monopolistic power.
The Department of Justice lawyer says:
“One monopoly is bad enough; what we have here is a triple monopoly.”
According to the government, Google’s tools play a crucial role in the process of publishing online ads, such as display ads that appear in banners and different sections of websites. Some of these tools control about 90% of the market. For instance, Google has a publisher ad server called Google Ad Manager, which helps publishers sell ad spaces. This server is also connected to the ad exchange AdX.
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