Google faces US$3.2 billion damage claims on ad-tech monopoly
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Publishers are accusing Google of harm caused by monopolising advertisement technology markets.
PHOTO: AFP
- A New York federal judge ruled that USA Today, Daily Mail, and a class of publishers can seek over US$3.2 billion in damages from Google for monopolising ad-tech markets.
- The ruling allows jury trials to proceed on how Google's AdX exchange harmed major publishers, with specific damages amounts set for the class and individual plaintiffs.
- Google plans to defend the claims in court, while the US Justice Department has separately sued Google for illegally monopolising ad technology markets in 2023.
AI generated
USA Today, Daily Mail General and Trust, and a class of large publishers can seek more than US$3.2 billion (S$4.1 billion) in damages for harm caused by monopolisation of advertising technology markets by Alphabet’s Google, a New York federal judge ruled.
In an opinion late on Sept 30, US District Judge P. Kevin Castel in Manhattan said he will allow jury trials to move forward on how Google’s conduct related to its AdX advertising exchange harmed major publishers.
A class of about 5,000 publishers can pursue about US$1.7 billion in damages from Google, he ruled, rejecting a bid by the company to contest the damage calculations.
USA Today and Daily Mail, which each sued separately, will be allowed to seek about US$900 million and US$600 million, respectively, he found.
In a statement, Google said the ruling also dismissed claims by some publishers who used a different ad-buying tool and that it will “defend the rest in court”.
“The ruling allows USA Today to pursue its US$1 billion in worldwide damages (before trebling under the antitrust laws), a significant victory that streamlines our path to recovery,” Polly Grunfeld Sack, the company’s chief legal counsel, said in a statement to Bloomberg.
“We are pleased with this result and look forward to proving our claims at trial.”
Philip Korologos, a partner at Boies Schiller Flexner, the law firm representing the publishers, said the firm looks forward to presenting the claims at trial, where the class will seek to recover damages.
The US Justice Department and a group of states sued Google in 2023, accusing the company of illegally monopolising several areas of the advertising technology used to buy, sell and serve the online display ads that appear on many websites.
A federal judge in Virginia found that the company illegally monopolised two advertising technology markets and ruled in September that Google must make its ad tech tools work with those operated by rivals, but declined to order a breakup of the business.
The lawsuits pending in New York seek damages related to the same conduct. Castel has not yet scheduled a trial date.
USA Today and Daily Mail did not immediately respond to requests for comment. BLOOMBERG