Google is reportedly offering to sell its AdX ad market to address antitrust concerns in the EU. Sources said European publishers rejected Google’s offer, arguing that the company would have to invest more to eliminate conflicts of interest in its online advertising operations. Lawyers familiar with the antitrust cases said this is the first time Google has offered to sell an asset in response to such a lawsuit.
Despite this purported sales pitch, Google is staying clear about its ad tech business. “As we’ve said before, the European Commission’s lawsuit against third-party display ad products is based on flawed interpretations of the fiercely competitive and fast-growing ad technology sector. We remain committed to the case,” a Google representative said. edition. We’ve reached out to Google and will update this story if we receive any additional comment from the company.
Google’s control over online advertising has caused concern around the world. Regulators questioned whether the company’s operations at multiple stages of the adtech supply chain allowed it to favor its own business, creating an unfair advantage that could hurt competition and drive up ad prices.
The European Commission launched this push against the company’s advertising arm . The UK’s competition watchdog has also previously sounded the alarm about a possible Google ad monopoly . Google too In the United States, the Department of Justice is suing on the same subject.
