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Gannett Co., Inc., a US-based publisher circulating USA TODAY and over 200 local publications has filed a federal lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York against Google for “monopolisation of advertising technology markets and deceptive commercial practices.”
The lawsuit, Gannett said, seeks to restore competition in the digital advertising marketplace and end Google’s monopoly, which will encourage investment in newsrooms and news content throughout the country.
“Google’s practices have depressed revenue and impacted local newsrooms adversely by monopolizing the markets for important software and technology products that publishers and advertisers use to buy and sell ad space,” Gannett Co., said in a statement.
The publisher alleges that Google has 90% market share for publisher ad servers, and controls 60% of the market for ad exchanges.
Publisher ad servers refer to the platform publishers use t offer ad space for sale, while ad exchanges run auctions among advertisers bidding for ad space on publishers’ websites.
The result is Google unfairly controlling selling, buying, and the exchange that matches sellers and buyers – and manipulating all aspects of online advertising transactions.
For Gannett, 60% of all buyers come through Google.
“Google has monopolised market trading to their advantage and at the expense of publishers, readers and everyone else. Digital advertising is the lifeblood of the online economy. Without free and fair competition for digital ad space, publishers cannot invest in their newsrooms,” said Michael Reed, Gannett Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.
“For more than a hundred years, Gannett has been a tireless advocate for freedom of the press empowering communities to thrive. This lawsuit seeks to ensure we can continue our mission for hundreds of years more.”
In 2022, Google made upwards of $30 billion in revenue from the sale of ad space on publishers’ websites which was six times the digital advertising revenue of all U.S. news publications, combined.
In December 2020, a bipartisan group of 17 US State Attorneys General filed a lawsuit against Google raising similar allegations of ad-tech monopolisation. The U.S. Department of Justice, joined by a bipartisan coalition of 17 additional States, filed its own ad-tech lawsuit against Google earlier this year.
Last week, the European Union’s competition authority filed a related ad-tech case based on the same underlying premise.The DOJ and EU are seeking a breakup of Google’s ad-tech business, in addition to monetary damages and fines.
