SAN FRANCISCO/WASHINGTON, June 3 (Reuters) – Ad tech firms and publishers have had to stay in the good graces of Google or risk insolvency.
That is why the U.S. Department of Justice is examining the dominance of Alphabet Inc’s Google in online advertising as part of a potential antitrust investigation, two sources told Reuters.
Google’s control over the market has long hurt the profits of smaller advertising technology companies who must appease the No. 1 online ad firm to be profitable, and online publishers who need Google’s search reach and ad tools to build an audience and make money on their content.
The ad market is just one of several areas of possible inquiry.
Google has declined to comment on the potential investigation, but has repeatedly said that it acts in the best interest of its users and offers sufficient warning to industry partners potentially affected by its moves.
Google is expected to capture 37% of the $129 billion spent on online ads in the United States in 2019, compared to 22% for No. 2 Facebook Inc and 10% for No. 3 Amazon.com Inc , according to ad research firm eMarketer.
news.trust.org/item/20190603202653-oclic
WASHINGTON, June 3 (Reuters) – The U.S. Justice Department has jurisdiction for a potential probe of Apple Inc as part of a broader review of whether technology giants are using their size to act in an anti-competitive manner, two sources told Reuters.
The Justice Department’s Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) met in recent weeks and agreed to give the Justice Department the jurisdiction to undertake potential antitrust probes of Apple and Google, owned by Alphabet Inc , the sources said.
The FTC was given jurisdiction to look at Amazon.com Inc and Facebook Inc, the sources said.
The sources did not say what the government’s potential concern might be regarding Apple.
news.trust.org/item/20190603172308-idq2b