Google Dodges Breakup But Faces Six Years of Antitrust Oversight

U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema has ruled in favor of Google, imposing remedies on the company to loosen restrictions around its online advertising technology and install an internal antitrust compliance monitor.

The decision avoids a government-requested breakup of part of Google's ad-tech business but requires the company to separate certain commercial requirements involving its publisher ad server and AdX, its advertising exchange.

Websites using Google's ad server will no longer have to use AdX, while rival publisher ad servers are expected to gain greater access to real-time bids from the exchange. The restrictions are set to remain in effect for six years, considerably shorter than the 15-year period sought by the Justice Department and states involved in the litigation.

Google plans to appeal the court's underlying liability finding involving its Google Ad Manager publishing technology. Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward Jr. characterized the ruling as a significant win for the government's effort to restore competition, while saying the Justice Department was reviewing the opinion and considering its legal options.