Nine more U.S. states have joined the U.S. Justice Department's latest antitrust complaint against Alphabet's Google, accusing the tech giant of abusing its dominance in the digital ad market.
The DOJ is requesting the court to order the company to divest its Google Ad Manager suite, among other actions, due to alleged violations of the federal Sherman Antitrust Act.
- Originally, eight states joined the DOJ in filing the lawsuit in federal court on Jan. 24.
- The addition of Arizona, Nebraska, New Hampshire, and six others brings the total number of states involved to 17.
- The lawsuit accuses Google of using "anticompetitive, exclusionary, and unlawful means" to combat any threats to its monopoly in digital advertising technologies.
- This includes acquiring rivals via "anticompetitive mergers" and pressuring advertisers and publishers to use its own ad technology products, the complaint alleges.
- Google denies the allegations and has asked a judge to dismiss the case.
- The U.S. government's previous antitrust lawsuit, which remains ongoing, accuses Google of suppressing competition in the online search market. It's set to go to trial in September.
