Tejinder Gill’s Post

Well, well, well... look what we have here! Google's been caught with its hand in the cookie jar again. The Japan Fair Trade Commission (FTC) has accused our favorite search giant of some pretty shady tactics. Allegedly, Google prevented Yahoo Japan from accessing crucial tech for generating targeted ad revenue from mobile searches between 2015 and 2022. Not cool, Google. Not cool at all. Here's the skinny: • Google only changed its tune after the FTC called them out. • This could mean bad news for advertisers, like higher costs and less choice. • It's the first time the FTC has taken action against Alphabet (Google's parent company), but they got off without a penalty. Lucky them. • The Japanese watchdog is keeping a close eye on Google and might reopen the investigation if needed. • They're also looking into whether Google's been pushing smartphone makers to favor their search services. Sneaky, sneaky. Sounds familiar, right? It's not just Japan – Google's facing similar accusations all over the world. The U.S. vs. Google antitrust trial is one to watch, especially the part about whether Google unfairly used its search ad tools to hurt competitors. If you want the full scoop, check out this article from Search Engine Land: "Google accused of anti-competitive tactics by Japanese regulator" (https://lnkd.in/gXi5v7ss). It's a real eye-opener! ️ Happy Wednesday, folks! Let me know what you think about all this Google drama. Cheers, Casey Jones #GoogleDrama #AntitrustBattles #DigitalMarketing #AdTech #FairPlay

A group of 32 media companies have recently filed a lawsuit against Google Inc. in a Dutch court claiming damages for abuse of dominant position by the company in the digital advertising market. The media companies have primarily alleged that they have been able to accrue lesser revenue due to unfair business practices of the search giant, and are even made to pay a higher fee for availing AdTech services. The said lawsuit puts the spotlight back on competition concerns in AdTech industry. We had conducted an international conference in collaboration with Bennett University last year on the issue highlighting some of these concerns. We are currently in the process of preparing a memorandum on the same. If you are an affected entity across the supply chain, or have general comments as an academician/ practitioner, we would be happy to hear from you. You may reach out to us at [email protected]. The last date for submitting the comments is 3rd March, 2024. A white paper on competitiveness of AdTech industry in India published by us can be accessed here: https://lnkd.in/g_UczuGJ #AdTech #competitionlaw #techpolicy #AOD #intermediary

🚨 𝐁𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐍𝐞𝐰𝐬: 𝐆𝐨𝐨𝐠𝐥𝐞 𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐀𝐛𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭 𝐏𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐧 𝐀𝐝 𝐓𝐞𝐜𝐡 🚨 The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has provisionally found that Google has been abusing its dominant position in the digital advertising technology sector, commonly known as the 'ad tech stack.' This anti-competitive behavior may be harming thousands of UK publishers and advertisers. 📰💻 𝐆𝐨𝐨𝐠𝐥𝐞’𝐬 𝐀𝐧𝐭𝐢-𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐓𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐝 🕵♂ The CMA's investigation reveals that Google’s powerful position as an intermediary across key parts of the ad tech stack allows it to preference its own services and disadvantage competitors. For years, Google has allegedly: 🔸Manipulated bids to favor its ad exchange, AdX 🏆 🔸Provided preferential access to advertisers using Google Ads 🔸Restricted competition from rival ad exchanges by allowing AdX to bid first in auctions run by its DoubleClick for Publishers (DFP) server 𝐈𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐭 𝐨𝐧 𝐏𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐀𝐝𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐬 💼📉 Publishers and advertisers across the UK rely heavily on ad revenue to support their businesses, but Google’s actions have created an uneven playing field. This stifles competition, limits choices for businesses, and ultimately harms consumers who benefit from a fair and open market. 𝐆𝐥𝐨𝐛𝐚𝐥 𝐒𝐜𝐫𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐲 𝐨𝐧 𝐆𝐨𝐨𝐠𝐥𝐞 🌍👁 This investigation adds to the growing scrutiny of Google’s practices worldwide, with ongoing investigations by the US Department of Justice and the European Commission. All eyes are now on Google to see how they will respond to this mounting pressure. 𝐈𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐚’𝐬 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐈𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐠𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬 𝐒𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐫 𝐈𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐞𝐬 🇮🇳🔍 In addition to the CMA’s findings, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) is also investigating similar anti-competitive practices by Google in the ad tech space. The CCI is closely examining Google's dominance in the Indian digital advertising market, raising concerns that these practices may be limiting competition and harming businesses in India as well. With global scrutiny intensifying, regulatory authorities across multiple jurisdictions are focusing on how Google’s conduct impacts the competitive landscape of the ad tech industry. #CompetitionLaw #AdTech #Google #DigitalAdvertising #Antitrust #CMA #CCI #Monopoly

Google offered to sell part of Ad Tech business, not enough for EU publishers. Read More - https://lnkd.in/d_skmAQx Alphabet Inc.'s Google took a major step this year to end an EU antitrust investigation with an offer to sell its advertising marketplace AdX but European publishers rejected the proposal as insufficient. Image Courtesy - Reuters MAVIP Group | Pratyush Shastri | Ishita Das | Anshul Gupta | Vikram D. | Ranjana Arora | Antima Sharda | Manikandan Sivanandam | Abdallah Jallouf | Manoj Bagdare | Vikas Mehra | Aryan Pitliya #google #alphabet #adtech #AdX #EU #investigation #industrynews #advertising

🚨 Antitrust Concerns: Google's AdTech Under Fire 🚨 Google is facing serious allegations of anticompetitive practices in the adtech space. The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) claims that Google has been leveraging its dominance to give its own ad exchange (AdX) an unfair advantage. 📉 Here’s what’s being alleged: Preferential Access: Google gave its AdX exclusive access to advertisers using its ad buying tools, leaving rivals with limited opportunities. Bid Manipulation: AdX bids were allegedly given higher values, ensuring AdX wins more auctions. Right of First Refusal: AdX was allowed to bid first in auctions, squeezing out competition. These actions have potentially harmed thousands of publishers and advertisers by limiting competition and driving up costs. With investigations ongoing in the UK, EU, and US, the future of Google’s adtech empire could face significant challenges. 🏛️ It’s a reminder of how crucial fair competition is for innovation and a healthy digital economy. #AdTech #Google #Antitrust #Competition #DigitalEconomy #Advertising #TechRegulation #ProgrammaticAdvertising #MarketDominance #Innovation

Meta Platforms has offered to impose new restrictions on the use of certain data from advertisers on its Facebook Marketplace platform, according to a statement from the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) on Friday. This proposal is part of amendments to commitments previously accepted by the British competition regulator in November... #antitrust #competitionlaw #techREG #advertisers #digitalplatform #onlinemarket #commitments #userdata #advertiserdata

Just in: Tencent posted a 6% rise in first-quarter revenue on Tuesday, beating analyst expectations. The operator of the WeChat messaging platform said revenue reached 159.5 billion yuan ($22.04 billion) for the three months ended March 31. While the company's business services and advertising revenue continue to grow, its core gaming business is facing a notable slowdown as popularity for its existing hits plateaus and fades. For the first quarter, domestic gaming revenue declined 2% to 34.5 billion yuan, while international gaming revenue rose 3% to 13.6 billion yuan. Revenue from online ads jumped 26% to 26.5 billion yuan as Tencent upgraded its ad infrastructure and further commercialised its short video platform WeChat Video Accounts, a rival to ByteDance' TikTok-like app Douyin in China. Revenue from fintech and business services grew 7% to 52.3 billion yuan as the firm's suite of payment, ecommerce and productivity software and services continued to gain traction in China. https://lnkd.in/gf-deT7x

Stuff we learned this week plus the "Top 10" quotes from the US vs Google antitrust trial this week: Stuff we learned - There are 1,175 US customers that Google considers “large”, meaning more than $25 million/year in total spend. - Hair BnB is a thing. - The judge definitely doesn’t know what an LLM is. - Google’s display business wasn’t profitable until 2018. - 21% of DV360 spend goes to YouTube. - The Google display business spends $1.5 billion on engineers every year. Top 10 Q's 1) “Standard Oil was a monopoly, but the oil market still expanded” 2) “I don’t think offering open RTB to everyone would end the options to play games with ad selection.” 3) “GDN is half of AdX, and non-GDN is $700 million versus $2-2.5 billion on other exchanges. In other words, ~75-80% of in-play demand is on other exchanges who offer lax policies.” 4) “The goal of Jedi is to be ‘slightly better’ than Header Bidding.” 5) [Regarding expanding AWBid] “I was in favor of it” 6) “I don’t think offering open RTB to everyone would end the efforts to play games with ad selection,” 7) “If you’re not happy with Google’s ad tech, you switch to other ad tech, like Facebook.” 8) “If the ad server isn’t good, maybe advertisers will not want to work with you, and they will go to Facebook.” 9) “Larry gave a cautious green light to proceed on developing the business case. He did not 100% agree to a fully open network. Suggested Google set some baseline control about which exchanges to let in, competitors to restrict, and operating policy” 10) the “spaghetti football.” Thanks, Ari Paparo for taking one for the team in the court room. https://lnkd.in/g7-7kCjh Details from Google on the trial. https://lnkd.in/gRbUBqgY thanks checkmyads.org for a very detail break down visit: https://lnkd.in/g739FxxE #usvgoogle

I took a look at the landmark US vs. Google adtech antitrust trial that heads to court today. If Google loses the case, it's going to be interesting to see which remedy the judge will opt for. While a breakup would be good news for companies like Meta, Amazon, and The Trade Desk, it could have unintended consequences for some advertisers and publishers. Read more over at Business Insider #antitrust #google #digitalads https://lnkd.in/eJhMrPn9

Google's Ad Empire Exposed: UK Watchdog Slams Anti-Competitive Practices 🚨 UK Watchdog vs. Google: Is the Tech Giant’s Ad Monopoly Crumbling? ⚖️ The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority has accused Google of anti-competitive practices in its online advertising tech, claiming it’s limiting fair competition for UK businesses. With billions of pounds at stake and potential fines of up to 10% of Google’s global revenue, the digital ad industry could be facing a seismic shift. But how will this impact publishers, advertisers, and rivals in the ad-tech world? Google maintains its services to help businesses grow, so will it dodge these claims or face global repercussions? Read more: https://lnkd.in/gKFUY8Qr #Google #AdTech #CompetitionLaw #DigitalAdvertising #TechNews #UKCMA #Antitrust #MarketCompetition #BigTech #AINews #AnalyticsInsight #AnalyticsInsightMagazine