On Thursday, a U.S. judge determined that Google held monopolistic control over the online advertising technology sector, dealing a potential setback to the company’s primary source of income.

The federal government along with over a dozen U.S. states have initiated an antitrust lawsuit against Alphabet-owned Google, alleging that the company has acted unlawfully to maintain control over three key areas of digital advertising: publisher ad serving systems, advertiser toolkits, and exchange platforms.

This represents one out of two federal lawsuits aiming at Google, which might lead to the division of the company and reduce its power. It’s also part of broader governmental efforts to control major tech corporations.

Most websites utilize a set of three Google advertisement tools that collectively provide no means for publishers to avoid using Google’s advertising technologies, according to the plaintiffs — an argument that District Court Judge Leonie Brinkema supported.

Brinkema stated in her decision that Google deliberately carried out multiple anti-competitive actions to gain and sustain monopolistic control over publisher ad servers and ad exchanges in the realm of open-web display advertising.

She noted that Google reinforced its dominant market position by implementing anti-competitive measures for its users and removing beneficial product features.

By excluding competitors, this behavior significantly damaged Google's publishing clients, disrupted the competitive environment, and ultimately negatively affected consumers accessing information on the open internet.

The decision will likely face an appeal, extending the proceedings that might ultimately reach the US Supreme Court.

Remedies under consideration

Internet ads form the backbone of Google’s financial success and fund popular free services like Maps, Gmail, and search capabilities.

Funds flooding into Google's treasury enable the tech giant from Silicon Valley to invest billions in artificial intelligence, ensuring they stay at the forefront of the computing industry.

Publishers such as News Corp and Gannett Publishing protest that they feel compelled to use Google’s ad tech services to display advertisements on their web platforms.

Brinkema allowed lawyers from both parties in the lawsuit seven days to present a timetable for presenting their arguments about the sanctions that should be applied to Google.

Proposing that Google divest itself of its advertising publishing and exchange businesses is expected to be one of the plaintiffs' suggestions.