United States v. Google LLC (2023)
| United States v. Google LLC | |
|---|---|
| Court | United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia |
| Full case name | United States, Commonwealth of Virginia, State of California, State of Colorado, State of Connecticut, State of New Jersey, State of New York, State of Rhode Island and State of Tennessee v. Google LLC |
| Started | January 24, 2023 |
| Decided | April 17, 2025 |
| Docket nos. | 1:23-cv-00108 |
| Defendant | Google LLC |
| Counsel for plaintiff | Julia Tarver Wood |
| Plaintiff | United States Department of Justice |
| Holding | |
| Plaintiffs have failed to prove that there is a relevant market for open-web display advertiser ad networks, but have proven that Google has violated Section 2 of the Sherman Act by willfully acquiring and maintaining monopoly power in the open-web display publisher ad server market and the open-web display ad exchange market, and has unlawfully tied its publisher ad server (DFP) and ad exchange (AdX) in violation of Sections 1 and 2 of the Sherman Act. | |
| Court membership | |
| Judge sitting | Leonie M. Brinkema |
United States v. Google LLC is a federal antitrust case brought by the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) against Google LLC on January 24, 2023. The suit accuses Google of illegally monopolizing the advertising technology (adtech) market in violation of sections 1 and 2 of the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890. The suit is separate from the first antitrust case launched in 2020 that accuses Google of an illegal monopoly in the search engine market.
Filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, the suit aims to force Google to sell off significant portions of adtech business and require the company to cease certain business practices. The trial began on September 9, 2024 and concluded on September 27. Closing arguments were delivered on November 25, 2024. On April 17, 2025, Brinkema ruled that Google had formed an illegal monopoly in its advertising business. Google issued a press release stating that the company would appeal the decision.