Google has been told it should relax its adtech rules and appoint an internal monitor to ensure antitrust compliance.
A US federal judge has advised Google to relax its online ad auction rules to encourage competition in the adtech space.
The latest update comes despite the US Department of Justice’s (DoJ) push to enforce a sell-off of the advertising arm, claiming Google could not be trusted to run it. It is the second time a judge has rejected the DoJ’s push to brea-up an Alphabet-owned unit.
Last year, judge Amit Mehta rule Google will not be forced to sell its Chrome browser after it had been found to hold a monopoly in search and search advertising.
US district judge Leonie Brinkema in Virginia previously ruled she would not force Google to sell-off its adtech business, but had not proposed any ‘remedies’ as it needed to be reviewed by both parties.
Brinkema has now given her assessment in a 106-page dossier. While details of the order are largely sealed, the judge has determined Google must share data about ad auctions with other publishers and sell ad space using the technology.
She said access to real-time AdX bids through rival publisher ad servers should be sufficient to restore “much-needed” competition and rejected the US Department of Justice’s insistence on breaking up Google’s adtech business.
Brinkema explained that unlike the search industry, AI had not yet been particularly disruptive to the adtech landscape and a break-up would risk being outpaced by the “imminent industry disruptions caused by AI”.
Alongside these changes, Google must also appoint an internal antitrust monitor to ensure compliance, the judge ruled, which is necessary due to the “gravity” of Google’s antitrust violations.
Google’s global head of regulatory affairs, Lee-Anne Mulholland, said: “We’re very pleased the court rejected the D.O.J’s proposal to break apart tools that help small businesses reach new customers and grow.”
Previously, Google argued it could not divest online ad exchange tools due to their tight integration with other parts of the business, and instead offered to be more transparent with ad pricing to both marketers and rival ad businesses.
Revenue from Google’s adtech business reached $30bn in 2025, which equals roughly 8% of its total revenue for Alphabet.
These changes must stay in place for the next six years, the judge stated – a significant decrease from the government’s proposed 15-year stint.
