Judge shows reluctance to break up Google ads business in US monopoly case

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A US federal judge has signalled concerns about ordering the break-up of Google’s advertising business, as courts in monopoly cases shy away from mandating Big Tech companies split themselves up.

Leonie Brinkema, a federal district judge in Virginia, in April ruled Google had “wilfully” monopolised parts of the digital ads market.

The Department of Justice, which brought the case, has requested Google parent Alphabet be ordered to spin off elements of its ads business.

But in a final hearing on Friday about the so-called remedies to be imposed to address the monopoly, Brinkema said the DoJ’s request was a “dramatic change” that would not be as “easily enforceable” as the resolution Google has proposed.

Brinkema said she was “concerned about the timing of all this” because a court-ordered break-up would likely be delayed while Google…