Publishers file suit against Google for ‘deceptive and manipulative’ adtech practices

Five of the biggest publishers in the US have all filed lawsuits against Google in the past week over its digital advertising practices, with The Atlantic claiming the tech giant has operated a “sophisticated, anticompetitive, and deceptive scheme for well over a decade”.

The Atlantic, Penske Media, Conde Nast, Vox Media, and newspaper giant McClatchy have all filed separate but similar lawsuits, each claiming that Google misuses its market dominance. In August 2024, the US Justice Department successfully sued Google for violating antitrust laws with its digital advertising monopoly.

The lawsuits each claim that Google’s ad tech dominance forces publishers to enter its advertising ecosystem, where it artificially lowers online advertising prices through secret auctions, and kills off ad tech competitors through an illegal practice known as “tying”.