https://howitunfolded.com/court-cases/google-ad-tech-antitrust-case/The Justice Department and a group of states sued Google in January 2023, alleging that it monopolised the technology used to buy and sell online display advertising. Judge Leonie Brinkema found in April 2025 that Google illegally monopolised two of the three markets alleged, and in September 2026 she declined to order a breakup and imposed six years of conduct remedies. The European Commission fined Google 2.95 billion euros in a separate ad tech decision in September 2025.enhttps://howitunfolded.com/court-cases/google-ad-tech-antitrust-case/#e16google-ad-tech-antitrust-case-8af4a97b8dFri, 02 Oct 2026 12:00:00 +0000The United States, 17 states and Google filed one jointly proposed final judgment, labelling and underlining their separate proposals where they could not agree, the court filing shows. In the 41 page document the plaintiffs proposed six months for Google to connect AdX to Prebid and Google proposed 12 months, AdExchanger reported.https://howitunfolded.com/court-cases/google-ad-tech-antitrust-case/#e14google-ad-tech-antitrust-case-0e44fe66c8Wed, 16 Sep 2026 12:00:00 +0000The public version shows Google may not require websites that use its ad server to also use AdX, must connect AdX and its ad server to the open source Prebid system, and must let AdX bid into rival publisher ad servers on the same terms as its own. A monitor will oversee compliance and the remedies last six years rather than the 15 years sought, Reuters, AdExchanger and The Next Web reported.https://howitunfolded.com/court-cases/google-ad-tech-antitrust-case/#e15google-ad-tech-antitrust-case-7197a062b4Wed, 16 Sep 2026 12:00:00 +0000Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward Jr. called the decision a significant victory and said the department was reviewing its options. Google said it would appeal the liability ruling, Reuters reported.https://howitunfolded.com/court-cases/google-ad-tech-antitrust-case/#e13google-ad-tech-antitrust-case-df1e159094Wed, 02 Sep 2026 12:00:00 +0000Brinkema issued a 106 page remedies opinion under seal with a short public order, declining to order Google to sell AdX or its publisher ad server. She ordered behavioural remedies instead and directed the parties to file a joint proposed final judgment within 30 days, Bloomberg News reported.https://howitunfolded.com/court-cases/google-ad-tech-antitrust-case/#e12google-ad-tech-antitrust-case-66e3ac0b65Sun, 01 Mar 2026 12:00:00 +0000The Commission extended its assessment of Google's compliance plan in March 2026 and had neither accepted nor rejected it by September 2026, The Next Web reported.https://howitunfolded.com/court-cases/google-ad-tech-antitrust-case/#e11google-ad-tech-antitrust-case-06cf637368Fri, 21 Nov 2025 12:00:00 +0000The parties presented closing arguments on remedies on 21 November 2025, according to transcript citations in the court's remedies opinion. The Justice Department argued that only a sale of AdX would restore competition and Google called a forced sale too extreme, Reuters reported.https://howitunfolded.com/court-cases/google-ad-tech-antitrust-case/#e10google-ad-tech-antitrust-case-ac6d21a9d2Fri, 14 Nov 2025 12:00:00 +0000Google said on 14 November 2025 that it had submitted a compliance plan to the Commission that it said would give publishers more pricing options and advertisers more choice, without selling any part of its business, the Associated Press reported. The Commission said it would assess whether the measures end the self-preferencing.https://howitunfolded.com/court-cases/google-ad-tech-antitrust-case/#e9google-ad-tech-antitrust-case-53a739a201Mon, 22 Sep 2025 12:00:00 +0000Brinkema held an 11 day bench trial on remedies, with testimony cited in her later opinion from 22 September 2025. The Justice Department and states sought structural remedies including a divestiture of AdX, a contingent divestiture of Google's publisher ad server and a 15 year term, while Google proposed behavioural changes lasting six years, the opinion records.https://howitunfolded.com/court-cases/google-ad-tech-antitrust-case/#e8google-ad-tech-antitrust-case-f5ed526589Fri, 05 Sep 2025 12:00:00 +0000The Commission found that Google breached Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union by favouring its own ad exchange, AdX, in ad selection and bidding since at least 2014. It ordered Google to end the self-preferencing and gave it 60 days to propose measures to address conflicts of interest. Google is appealing the decision.https://howitunfolded.com/court-cases/google-ad-tech-antitrust-case/#e5google-ad-tech-antitrust-case-6480590279Thu, 17 Apr 2025 12:00:00 +0000The court held that Google illegally monopolised the markets for publisher ad servers and ad exchanges for open web display advertising. It found the government had not proved a monopoly in tools advertisers use to buy display ads and had not shown the DoubleClick and Admeld acquisitions were anticompetitive, Bloomberg News reported.https://howitunfolded.com/court-cases/google-ad-tech-antitrust-case/#e6google-ad-tech-antitrust-case-ef21066fbeThu, 17 Apr 2025 12:00:00 +0000The Justice Department said the court had ruled that Google violated antitrust law by monopolising open web digital advertising markets.https://howitunfolded.com/court-cases/google-ad-tech-antitrust-case/#e7google-ad-tech-antitrust-case-cfbba92cedThu, 17 Apr 2025 12:00:00 +0000Google said it disagreed with the ruling on its publisher tools and would appeal that part of the decision, Bloomberg News reported. A remedy was left for separate proceedings.https://howitunfolded.com/court-cases/google-ad-tech-antitrust-case/#e4google-ad-tech-antitrust-case-a6203f004fMon, 09 Sep 2024 12:00:00 +0000The bench trial began with the government alleging that Google's position on both sides of the ad tech market let it keep as much as 36 cents of each advertising dollar. Google argued the case rested on outdated internet habits and a narrow segment of advertising, the Boston Globe reported.https://howitunfolded.com/court-cases/google-ad-tech-antitrust-case/#e3google-ad-tech-antitrust-case-b8b7ad6cfeFri, 14 Jun 2024 12:00:00 +0000At a hearing, Judge Leonie Brinkema denied the requests for summary judgment, saying too many facts were in dispute and the case had to go to trial, Bloomberg News and a wire report carried by ABC News reported. She had ruled the previous week that the case would be tried without a jury after Google paid the government more than 2 million dollars to cover its claimed damages, which mooted the only claim that required a jury, Bloomberg News and the Boston Globe reported.https://howitunfolded.com/court-cases/google-ad-tech-antitrust-case/#e2google-ad-tech-antitrust-case-64b9df3086Fri, 01 Dec 2023 12:00:00 +0000Google responded to the Statement of Objections in December 2023, the Commission said.https://howitunfolded.com/court-cases/google-ad-tech-antitrust-case/#e1google-ad-tech-antitrust-case-147f932448Thu, 01 Jun 2023 12:00:00 +0000The Commission sent Google a Statement of Objections in June 2023 setting out its preliminary view that Google abused a dominant position in advertising technology, according to the Commission's 2025 decision announcement.https://howitunfolded.com/court-cases/google-ad-tech-antitrust-case/#e0google-ad-tech-antitrust-case-be2cdc02aaTue, 24 Jan 2023 12:00:00 +0000The Justice Department and the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Tennessee and Virginia sued Google in the Eastern District of Virginia. They alleged that Google monopolised digital advertising technology in violation of Sections 1 and 2 of the Sherman Act, including through acquisitions and by conditioning real time access to its ad exchange on use of its publisher ad server.