The United States Department of Justice has moved forward with a lawsuit that seeks to force Google to divest a significant chunk of its advertising business, a move which would have huge knock-on effects on the advertising industry.

The lawsuit, filed on Tuesday (Jan. 24), argues that Google has “corrupted legitimate competition” in the ad tech industry by “seizing control” of the wide swathe of tools that facilitate digital advertising.

Arielle Garcia, chief privacy officer of UM, told Campaign US: “The DOJ suit against Google is not unexpected, illustrative of the sustained international regulatory scrutiny on platforms, as we’ve seen with the EU Digital Markets Act. Increased competition and greater transparency are foundational to a healthy digital ecosystem, and would benefit marketers and consumers alike.”

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