Justice Department expected to file antitrust lawsuit against Google as soon as September: report

By Jon Swartz

The Justice Department is poised to file an antitrust lawsuit against Alphabet Inc.’s Google as soon as September over its dominance in the online advertising market.

The suit is expected to come after Justice Department officials rejected concessions offered by Google, according to a Bloomberg News report that cited people familiar with the matter.

“Our advertising technologies help websites and apps fund their content, and enable small businesses to reach customers around the world,” a Google spokesperson said in a statement to MarketWatch. “The enormous competition in online advertising has made online ads more relevant, reduced ad tech fees , and expanded options for publishers and advertisers.”

Officials at the Justice Department were not immediately available for comment.

Shares of Google parent Alphabet /zigman2/quotes/202490156/composite GOOGL -1.94% /zigman2/quotes/205453964/composite GOOG -2.06% were flat in extended trading Tuesday.

/zigman2/quotes/202490156/composite

Add to watchlist GOOGL

Alphabet Inc. Cl A

US : U.S.: Nasdaq

$ 128.57

-2.55 -1.94%

Volume: 25.72M

Sept. 26, 2023 4:00p

P/E Ratio

27.20

Dividend Yield

N/A

Market Cap

$1659.32 billion

Rev. per Employee

$1.51M

/zigman2/quotes/205453964/composite

Add to watchlist GOOG

Alphabet Inc. Cl C

US : U.S.: Nasdaq

$ 129.45

-2.72 -2.06%

Volume: 20.38M

Sept. 26, 2023 4:00p

P/E Ratio

27.38

Dividend Yield

N/A

Market Cap

$1659.32 billion

Rev. per Employee

$1.51M