By Tae Kim
Alphabet's Google has violated antitrust law through its dominance of two online advertising markets, a federal judge ruled Thursday.
"Google has violated Section 2 of the Sherman Act by willfully acquiring and maintaining monopoly power in the open-web display publisher ad server market and the open-web display ad exchange market," U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema wrote.
Alphabet shares were down 1.5% Thursday morning. The company didn't immediately respond to a request for comment on the decision.
According to the court document, the judge said Google had "entrenched its monopoly power" by imposing anticompetitive policies on its customers and depriving other companies from competing with its offerings.
It wasn't a full victory for the U.S. government, as the judge ruled the plaintiffs failed to prove there was a relevant market for "open-web display advertiser ad networks."
The court ordered the two parties to submit appropriate remedies for the violations.
Alphabet lost a previous antitrust case last August, in which a federal judge ruled that the company maintained a monopoly in general search services and general text advertising by using exclusive distribution agreements with browser developers, smartphone makers, and wireless carriers.
Write to Tae Kim at tae.kim@barrons.com
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April 17, 2025 11:37 ET (15:37 GMT)
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