- A bipartisan coalition of eight AGs and the U.S. Department of Justice filed an antitrust suit against Google LLC alleging anticompetitive, monopolistic conduct regarding digital advertising technologies in violation of the Sherman Act.
- According to the complaint, Google allegedly engaged in a systematic campaign to control the ad tech industry through conduct that included acquiring competitors, forcing website publishers to adopt Google’s tools, punishing attempts by the industry to rebel against Google’s exclusionary practices, and manipulating the bidding process to block publishers from partnering with its rivals in ad tech.
- The complaint seeks declaratory and injunctive relief, an order of divestiture of certain ad tech, and damages, among other things.
- As previously reported, two groups of AGs filed separate antitrust suits against Google in January 2021 alleging anticompetitive conduct in its advertising practices.