Robert Besser
28 Jan 2023, 14:31 GMT+10
WASHINGTON D.C.: The US Justice Department has filed an antitrust complaint claiming that Google is abusing its dominance in digital advertising, and threatening to dismantle one of its key businesses.
Google should be forced to sell its ad manager suite, which generated some 12 percent of the tech giant's revenues in 2021 and is a crucial part of the search engine and cloud company's overall sales.
"Google has used anticompetitive, exclusionary, and unlawful means to eliminate or severely diminish any threat to its dominance over digital advertising technologies," the antitrust complaint said.
With its advertising business accounting for about 80 percent of its revenue, Google said that the government was "doubling down on a flawed argument that would slow innovation, raise advertising fees, and make it harder for thousands of small businesses and publishers to grow."
In response, the government said that its Big Tech investigations and lawsuits aim to level the playing field for the smaller rivals of the group of powerful companies, which include Amazon, Facebook and Apple.
"By suing Google for monopolizing advertising technology, the DOJ aims at the heart of the internet giant's power," said Charlotte Slaiman, competition policy director at Public Knowledge, as quoted by Reuters.
This week's lawsuit follows a 2020 antitrust lawsuit brought against Google, which alleged violations of antitrust law by the company in maintaining its dominance with its monopoly in online searches.
Eight states have joined in this week's lawsuit, including California, Google's home state.
Google has "stifled creativity in a space where innovation is crucial," California State Attorney General Rob Bonta said.
Get a daily dose of Illinois Intelligencer news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Illinois Intelligencer.
More InformationWASHINGTON D.C.: In an interview with Reuters this week, U.S. commander General Chance Saltzman said the United States Space Force ...
OTTAWA, Canada: During a joint news conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Canada's capital, Ottawa, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau ...
MALE, Maldives - The president-elect of the Maldives, Mohamed Muizzu, secured the release of his jailed mentor on Sunday, a ...
This article is part of a series by The Conversation, Getting to Zero, examining Australia's energy transition.When I was first ...
By Reena BharadwajWashington DC [US], October 2 (ANI): Terming the India-US ties one of the most defining partnerships, several top ...
Antony Blinken's knowledge of a pivotal Second World War event was called into question by social media commentersUsers of the ...
TALLAHASSEE, Florida: The Florida Lottery said this week that the second-largest lottery winner in U.S. history has come forward to ...
LONDON, UK: This week, the Global Financial Centers index showed that New York remains the world's leading financial center, with ...
KAOHSIUNG, Taiwan: In a significant milestone for its defense capabilities, Taiwan has unveiled its first domestically developed submarine. Although it ...
HONIARA, Solomon Islands: Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare revealed that he opted out of a Pacific Islands leaders' summit at the ...
SACRAMENTO, California: Intending to raise some US$160 million per year to help prevent gun violence, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed ...
MANILA, The Philippines: The Philippines remains steadfast in its resolve not to yield to Chinese efforts to obstruct its fishermen ...