UK Regulator Joins US in Antitrust Battle Against Google

Google is under intensifying scrutiny as multiple antitrust regulators examine its advertising practices, raising concerns about its dominance in the digital ad tech market. On Friday, the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) issued a statement of objection, accusing Google of leveraging its market position to stifle competition in the UK. The allegations revolve around Google’s ad server, ad exchange, and advertising tools, which the CMA claims are being used to prevent rivals from competing fairly.

According to CNBC, the CMA’s complaint highlights three crucial components of Google’s ad tech infrastructure: its ad exchange (AdX), its ad server (previously DoubleClick for Publishers), and its buying platforms, Google Ads and DV360. The CMA argues that Google manipulates these systems to restrict competition, disadvantaging rivals in the digital advertising market.

The CMA’s investigation aligns with other global probes into Google’s ad practices. Both the European Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) have also targeted Google for allegedly anti-competitive behavior in the digital ad market. The DOJ’s antitrust trial against Google is set to commence on Monday in Alexandria, Virginia, focusing on claims that the tech giant holds a monopoly over the digital advertising space, a matter that closely parallels the CMA’s concerns. Per CNBC, the DOJ has accused Google of hindering rival ad exchanges from gaining the necessary scale to compete, while also favoring its own ad platforms.

In response to the CMA’s objection, Google has strongly refuted the claims. “Google remains committed to creating value for our publisher and advertiser partners in this highly competitive sector,” said Dan Taylor, Google’s Vice President of global ads, in a statement reported by AdExchanger. He argued that the case is based on a flawed interpretation of the ad tech sector and indicated Google would respond to the regulator’s concerns.

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The CMA’s investigation, launched in 2022, focuses on how Google allegedly abuses its dominant position in the advertising market. According to CNBC, the regulator accused Google of favoring its own buyers by providing preferential access to AdX and influencing auction bids to ensure they perform better in AdX compared to rival platforms. The CMA further claims that Google’s practices have disadvantaged competitors in the publisher ad server market by obstructing the ability of rivals to challenge DoubleClick for Publishers (DFP).

This issue is not isolated to the UK. According to the DOJ, Google has maintained control over the ad server market by integrating its ad tech products to create a near-monopoly, preventing competitors from accessing fair opportunities in the ad auctions. The DOJ trial is expected to explore how Google’s practices, such as its approach to header bidding, have undermined competition. Header bidding is a method that allows advertisers to compete for ad space simultaneously, rather than one after the other, a process that Google is accused of trying to undermine.

As both the DOJ trial and the CMA investigation continue, Google will have the opportunity to respond formally to the allegations before the CMA reaches its final decision. The mounting pressure from regulators around the world suggests that the tech giant’s advertising dominance will remain under intense scrutiny in the coming months.

Source: CNBC