A federal judge has declined to force Google to sell off parts of its advertising technology business, instead ordering milder behavioral remedies to address illegal monopolization the court previously found in the ad tech market. US District Court Judge Leonie Brinkema issued the decision on September 2, 2026.
Brinkema said she would adopt most of the behavioral changes proposed by the parties, with some modifications. The specifics won’t be made public until the parties meet to work out any additional revisions and review the opinion for confidential information requiring redaction. Potential measures could include restrictions on Google using self-preferencing ad auction tactics or requirements that third-party ad tech tools receive the same real-time information as Google.
The Justice Department had successfully argued that Google illegally monopolized two markets: publisher ad servers, where publishers manage ad space for sale on their sites, and ad exchanges, which run the auctions through which that ad space is sold. Brinkema agreed that Google had illegally tied its Doubleclick for Publishers (DFP) ad server and AdX ad exchange together in an anticompetitive manner, making it nearly impossible for customers to leave. However, the judge found the DOJ failed to prove Google illegally monopolized the market for advertiser-side tools.
Once the final opinion is published, Google may appeal Brinkema’s underlying monopoly ruling. The company recently took a similar step after a separate judgment found it had monopolized the online search market. In that case, Judge Amit Mehta also stopped short of ordering a breakup, instead requiring Google to share data with competitors and modify its behavior.
“We’re very pleased the Court rejected the DOJ’s proposal to break apart tools that help small businesses reach new customers and grow,” said Google VP of regulatory affairs Lee-Anne Mulholland.
The ruling concludes the district court phase of the third major tech monopoly case brought by the federal government in recent years. The Federal Trade Commission recently lost a separate monopolization case against Meta, while trials involving Amazon and Apple are expected in the coming years.
Source: The Verge