Canada’s Competition Bureau is taking legal action against Google, accusing the company of engaging in anti-competitive behavior within its online advertising business. According to the country’s antitrust authority, Google has unlawfully linked two of its advertising tools in order to maintain its market dominance. This practice allegedly allowed Google to manipulate ad auctions by prioritizing its own tools over competitors.
The Bureau has filed an application with the Competition Tribunal, an independent body that operates like a court, seeking a requirement for Google to sell off two of its advertising technology tools. In response, Google stated that the complaint overlooks the strong competition in the advertising market, where both buyers and sellers have many alternatives. The company said it looks forward to presenting its case in court.
Dan Taylor, Google’s vice president of global advertising, stated, “Our advertising technology tools help websites and apps support their content and allow businesses of all sizes to effectively reach new customers.”
The case focuses on online web advertisements—ads displayed to users while they browse other websites. Digital ad inventory, or the space available for sale on websites, is typically bought and sold through automated auctions on digital platforms. These platforms are referred to as ad tech tools, and the entire set of tools used in the purchasing process is called the ad tech stack.
The Competition Bureau’s investigation found that Google had “abused its dominant position” as the largest ad tech stack provider in Canada. The Bureau’s notice, issued Thursday, said that through a series of strategic decisions made over several years, Google had effectively excluded competitors and positioned itself at the heart of the online advertising industry.
The agency argued that Google’s near-total control of the ad tech software was the result of intentional actions, not just superior performance or coincidence.
As part of the lawsuit, the Bureau is asking the Competition Tribunal to order Google to sell two of its ad tech tools and pay a fine of up to 3% of its global revenue to encourage compliance with Canadian competition laws. Google has 45 days to respond to the tribunal.
This legal action comes shortly after the U.S. Department of Justice and several states called for Google to sell its Chrome browser, as part of a broader effort to curb the company’s monopoly in online search.
