Gannett is suing Google for supposed antitrust violations in the advertising-technology markets (ad-tech), according to the Wall Street Journal.
The largest newspaper provider in the United States alleges that Google has engaged in anticompetitive practices that severely harm news outlets, especially smaller, local outlets, as the Journal reported.
“With control over the largest ad exchange and ad server — both of which Google acquired rather than developed — Google has carried out a sophisticated, anticompetitive, and deceptive scheme for well over a decade,” Gannett alleged in the official complaint. “Gannett brings this antitrust action for compensation and for injunctive relief to restore competition in the monopolized markets and safeguard news content for readers. ”
Gannett’s lawsuit is just one of many legal threats Google currently faces. The Department of Justice filed a lawsuit this year alleging similar antitrust violations, while across the Atlantic, the European Commission has released an investigative report into antitrust concerns, which could result in the sale of Google’s ad-tech branch.
“Google’s scheme has been wildly profitable. For example, in 2022 alone, Google made $30 billion from manipulating auctions for ad space across the internet. That is six times more revenue than every single U.S. news publication made from digital advertising, combined. Google, as middleman, has dwarfed the content creators that invest in journalists, editors, photographers, and many others to produce important news content,” the official complaint from Gannett claims.
Politicians have been raising concerns about Google’s narrative-shaping powers for years. In 2018, Republican Tennessee Senator Marsha Blackburn’s campaign ads were reportedly censored by Google due to “shocking content,” and former Democratic Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard claimed that Google’s censorship sank her presidential bid in 2020.
Government isn’t the arbiter of what can or cannot be said, who can speak, or who can worship!
📺 : @TulsiGabbard pic.twitter.com/e6ABQZwVN5
— House Judiciary GOP 🇺🇸 (@JudiciaryGOP) February 9, 2023
The company has said it will defend itself against the DOJ charges, according to the Journal. Google has made no statement on the Gannett lawsuit or the ongoing European Commission investigation.