Judge denied Google’s bid to move a federal antitrust lawsuit against it from Virginia to New York. U.S. District Judge. Leonie Brinkema made this decision on Friday in Alexandria, Virginia which is a win for the Justice Department and various states.
The lawsuit asserts that Google’s extensive control in the online advertising realm results in an almost total monopoly that harms consumers. The breaking news headlines of Virginia state, which filed a lawsuit against Google earlier this year desired to retain the case in the state. The complaint alleges that Google systematically disrupted equitable competition within the ad tech industry by acquiring power over a wide range of advanced tools used by brokers, advertisers, and publishers to enhance the efficiency of digital advertising.
The legal team’s argument
Google’s legal team argued that combining the Virginia case with similar lawsuits, including one filed by the Texas attorney general, in a single case heard in New York would promote judicial efficiency and decrease the possibility of contradictory court rulings. Google maintained that consolidating the Virginia case would be beneficial in this regard.
However, lawyers representing the Justice Department contended that the case must be kept in Virginia. They argued that federal antitrust cases are exempt from the law that promotes the consolidation of comparable lawsuits filed in multiple jurisdictions. Additionally, they expressed concerns that their lawsuit would become entangled and delayed if it were merged with all the other consolidated cases.
The lawsuit aims to compel Google to divest itself of the operations related to managing the technical tools utilized in the procurement, vending, and auctioning of digital display advertising. The company would only be allowed to maintain its core business, along with other offerings like YouTube, Gmail, and cloud services.
A word from Alphabet Inc
Previously, Alphabet Inc., Google’s parent company, stated that the lawsuit “reiterates a flawed argument” that could impede innovation, result in higher advertising costs, and make it tough for numerous small businesses and publishers to expand. Presently, digital advertising constitutes roughly 80% of Google’s earnings and mainly supports its other, less profitable ventures.
Conclusion:
In addition to the breaking news headlines of Virginia, several other states, including California, Connecticut, Colorado, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, and Tennessee, have joined the Justice Department as plaintiffs in this case.
