Google Has Asked A Federal Judge In Texas To Dismiss An Antitrust Lawsuit Filed About Advertising Business
Google has asked a federal judge in Texas to dismiss an antitrust lawsuit filed about advertising business
On Friday, Google filed a motion with a federal court seeking dismissal of the majority of the counts in an antitrust lawsuit brought by the state of Texas against the search engine company Google. It claimed in the filing that the Texas lawsuit is not "credible" and that the state has failed to establish that the company's advertising business is in violation of federal antitrust regulations.
As Google's Director of Economic Policy Adam Cohen wrote in a blog post, "AG Paxton's allegations are inflammatory rather than substantive, and we believe they fall short of the legal standard necessary to proceed to trial." According to the company, "the complaint misrepresents our business, products, and motivations, and we are seeking dismissal on the grounds that the complaint fails to assert plausible antitrust claims."
The lawsuit, filed by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in late 2020, claims that Google has illegally maintained a monopoly in online advertising by abusing its market power. Texas filed a new complaint in the lawsuit last week, amending the original one. The original complaint was filed in November, but the details of the complaint were redacted at the time until a judge ordered that the details of the complaint be made public.
Members of the following states have also joined the lawsuit: Alaska; Arkansas; Florida; Idaho; Indiana; Louisiana; Mississippi; Missouri; Montana; Nevada; North Dakota; South Carolina; South Dakota; Utah; Kentucky; and Puerto Rico.
A litany of clear facts, the company claims, is being withheld or misrepresented by Paxton. Among these are allegations that the company struck a deal with Facebook to maintain its online advertising dominance by crushing the new ad buying process known as "header bidding."
According to The New York Times, when Facebook announced the partnership in 2018, it did not disclose that Google provided its competitor with "special information and speed advantages to help the company succeed in auctions that it did not offer to other partners — including a guaranteed 'win rate.'" According to The New York Times, Google provided its competitor with "special information and speed advantages to help the company succeed in auctions that it did not offer to other partners."
Similarly, Meta, which is embroiled in its own antitrust battles, requested that an antitrust lawsuit filed against it by the Federal Trade Commission be dismissed, but a judge ruled earlier this month that the FTC's re-filed suit would move forward.
