Do Son 
The United States Department of Justice is demanding that Google divest key components of its advertising business and grant competitors access to real-time bidding data, in an effort to dismantle what has been deemed an unlawful monopoly in the digital advertising market. This move follows an April ruling by Federal Judge Leonie Brinkema, who determined that Google illegally dominates the ad server and ad exchange markets by bundling services and stifling competition.
On Friday, May 2, during a hearing in a Virginia court, DOJ representatives asserted that the only effective remedy to restore fair competition is the forced sale of Google’s advertising assets, including publisher ad servers and ad exchanges. The department also proposes that Google be required to share real-time auction data with other market participants. Hearings on these proposals are scheduled for September 22.
Google staunchly opposes these measures. The company maintains that its advertising tools are both efficient and widely adopted, and argues that compelled divestiture would harm both publishers and advertisers. According to Lee-Ann Mulholland, Google’s Head of Regulatory Affairs, the DOJ’s proposals exceed the scope of the court’s decision and lack legal merit.
This marks the third antitrust case brought against Google in recent years. The courts have previously found the company guilty of maintaining an illegal monopoly in the search engine market and of anticompetitive practices related to the Google Play app store. As part of those proceedings, the DOJ has also called for the sale of the Chrome browser and for competitors to be granted access to search query data.
Google plans to appeal the rulings, asserting that its actions foster innovation and competition, and that the proposed remedies risk compromising intellectual property protections and user privacy.
The upcoming autumn hearings are expected to play a pivotal role in shaping the future of digital advertising and in defining Google’s continued presence within the sector.
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