The case was the second federal lawsuit against Google over alleged antitrust violations and the first since US President Joe Biden took office two years ago.
Google's ad dealings generated more than $200 billion in sales in 2021 and is parent company Alphabet's biggest moneymaker by a wide margin. The case was launched by the Department of Justice in conjunction with eight US states: California, Colorado, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Tennessee, and Virginia.Central to the case is Google's dominance of the ad tech business, the technology that companies rely on for their online advertising needs.
The federal case follows state lawsuits against Google that have alleged it illegally dominates the markets for online search, advertising technology and apps on the Android mobile platform."Advertising accounts for the vast majority of its revenues, and its ads business is as powerful as it is because of its scale and the way its ad products are integrated," she added.
The lawsuit"is 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," Google added.