Judge Orders Google to Overhaul Ad Tech Practices
A federal judge has ordered Alphabet Inc., parent company of Google, to overhaul its online advertising technology practices and appoint an internal antitrust compliance monitor.
The U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema in Alexandria, Virginia, found that Google must relax rules governing its online ad auctions and end practices that publishers said locked them into its tools.
The changes are set to remain in place for six years, a far cry from the 15-year term the Department of Justice and several states had sought. However, the judge did not order the breakup of Google's AdX exchange, as requested by the DOJ.
Google has already announced plans to appeal the ruling, maintaining that a full breakup would have made it harder for small businesses to reach customers through its advertising platform.