Google Spared Breakup as Judge Orders Business Practice Overhaul

A federal judge has ruled that Google will not have to break up its advertising operations, but the company must alter its business practices.

The decision comes after a lengthy trial, during which Judge Leonie M. Brinkema concluded that Google had engaged in anticompetitive acts to acquire and maintain monopoly power in the publisher ad server and ad exchange markets for open-web display advertising.

The judge noted that Google acted to preserve its monopoly power by imposing anticompetitive policies on its customers and eliminating desirable product features.

Google has faced numerous lawsuits challenging its dominance in advertising since the Obama administration, with the company deriving about 70% of its $403 billion in total revenue from online ads in 2025.