Google Spared Breakup, but Must Change Ad-Tech Practices
Google has narrowly avoided a breakup of its advertising technology business after a US federal court rejected the Department of Justice's proposal to force the company to divest parts of its ad-tech operations.
The decision, handed down by US District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema of the Eastern District of Virginia on September 3, 2026, means Google will instead be required to change how it operates in digital advertising markets where it was previously found to have exercised illegal monopoly power.
The court's ruling is significant because the DOJ had sought structural action against an advertising business that forms a major part of Google's wider revenue base. Google's parent company Alphabet has a market value of $4.11 trillion, while the company generates nearly $400 billion in annual advertising sales.