EU Joins U.S. Enforcers in Demanding Break Up of Google’s Advertising Monopoly

In response to a preliminary view issued by the European Commission to Google, finding that the company breached EU antitrust rules and ordering a divestiture of parts of its digital advertising business, the American Economic Liberties Project released the following statement.

“Antitrust enforcers worldwide agree: we must break up Google’s advertising monopoly,” said Katherine Van Dyck, Senior Counsel at the American Economic Liberties Project. “Like the Department of Justice and a coalition of U.S. state attorneys general, the Commission understands that Google’s position as a buyer, broker, and owner of a digital advertising exchange poses pervasive conflicts of interest. They have also determined that Google regularly abuses its dominant position, undermining smaller businesses, the news ecosystem, and, in fact, the entire digital market. A break up is long overdue and, as the Commission said in its statement, it is the only way to stop Google’s anticompetitive behavior.”

The European Commission’s order follows similar action from the Department of Justice, U.S. Congress, and a broad coalition of state attorneys general. In January 2023, the Department of Justice Antitrust Division filed a suit against Google for monopolization in digital advertising, also specifically asking for a break up of the search giant. In May 2022, Senators Mike Lee, Amy Klobuchar, Ted Cruz, and Richard Blumenthal introduced legislation to break up and regulate Google’s advertising business. Led by the State of Texas, a group of U.S. states and territories sued Google in 2020 for illegally monopolizing the digital advertising market.

To learn more about Google’s monopolization of online advertising markets, read “Addressing Facebook and Google’s Harms Through a Regulated Competition Approach.”

Learn more about Economic Liberties here.