A federal judge ruled that Google illegally monopolized markets related to online advertising technology, specifically focusing on publisher ad servers and ad exchanges. The ruling by US District Judge Leonie Brinkema described Google's actions as anticompetitive and harmful to both customers and competitors. While the judge recognized these violations in two markets, she did not classify Google as a monopoly in a third market related to display ads purchased by advertisers. The ruling is a significant setback for Google, which faces further scrutiny in ongoing antitrust cases.
"Google has willfully engaged in a series of anticompetitive acts to acquire and maintain monopoly power in the publisher ad server and ad exchange markets for open-web display advertising," Brinkema wrote in the 115-page opinion.
"The judge found that Google further entrenched its monopoly power by imposing anticompetitive policies on its customers and eliminating desirable product features."
"In addition to depriving rivals of the ability to compete, this exclusionary conduct substantially harmed Google's publisher customers, the competitive process, and, ultimately, consumers of information on the open web."
"The ruling is a second major blow to the embattled tech giant that was already found to have monopolized the online search market in a separate case."
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