A federal judge on Thursday ruled that Google-parent Alphabet has used classic monopoly-building tactics to dominate online advertising. Google stock fell amid the news.
The Department of Justice had claimed Google's dominance of the digital ad market has damaged advertisers and content creators. Some analysts call it the "DoubleClick trial." In 2008, Google acquired leading digital advertising firm DoubleClick for $3.1 billion.
Judge Leonie Brinkema of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia ruled that Google violated antitrust law by "wilfully acquiring and maintaining monopoly power."
However, Brinkema rejected the government's position that Google unlawfully monopolized a third market within the ad tech industry: the market for networks that help advertisers buy display ads across the open web.
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Google To Appeal Ruling
Alphabet said it plans to appeal. "We won half of this case and we will appeal the other half," said Lee-Anne Mulholland, vice president, regulatory affairs, in a statement. "The Court found that our advertiser tools and our acquisitions, such as DoubleClick, don't harm competition. We disagree with the Court's decision regarding our publisher tools. Publishers have many options and they choose Google because our ad tech tools are simple, affordable and effective."
Shares in digital advertising firms Trade Desk and Criteo rose on the ruling.
The government has stated that Google should sell off its Google Ad Manager, which includes the company's publisher ad server and its ad exchange. The ad servers and the market for ad exchanges sit between buyers and sellers.
The internet giant already is battling another antitrust lawsuit filed by the DOJ. Federal judge Amit Mehta last year ruled that Alphabet illegally maintained a monopoly over online search services and prevented rivals from developing their own products.
A key part of the ruling centered on multibillion-dollar payments that Google makes to Apple to be the default search engine on iPhones.
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Judge Mehta is now weighing what remedies to order. He is expected to decide on the penalties by August. The DOJ has requested that Google be forced to sell its Chrome browser and take other measures, possibly involving Apple.
On the stock market today, Google fell 1.7% to 150.76. Google stock has retreated 20% in 2025. Trade Desk stock rose 2.9% to 49.86. Criteo stock advanced 3.9% to 30.35.
Google stock holds an IBD Composite Rating of 77 out of a best-possible 99, according to IBD Stock Checkup. The score combines five separate proprietary ratings into one rating. The best growth stocks have a Composite Rating of 90 or better.
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Follow Reinhardt Krause on X, formerly Twitter, @reinhardtk_tech for updates on artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and cloud computing.
