• by Laurie Sullivan , 6 hours ago

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) made its final appeal on Friday to convince Judge Leonie Brinkema to divest key parts of Google’s advertising business.

The DOJ at closing arguments attempted to convince Judge Brinkema to force Google to sell its ad exchange, AdX, and to open-source its auction logic, the algorithms that decide how and where ads are served.

If open-sourcing the technology to reveal the algorithms is not possible, the DOJ asked that Google divest the ad server, Google Ad Manager.

But Google argued that the DOJ failed to meet the burden for divestiture, a source said, highlighting overlap with behavioral remedies and technical unworkability.

But Judge Brinkema expressed concerns about the commercial feasibility and concrete nature of the proposed remedies, questioning implementation timelines and lack of details, which is a decision expected next year, according to a source close to Google.

The judge also brought up the fact that Google will seek to appeal the case -- a move that could push any forced sale years down the road -- and indicated she will likely issue a decision next year.

Meanwhile, Pinterest Chief Executive Officer Bill Ready addressed whether breaking up Google would restore competition or provide different incentives, which could recreate the same dynamics in a new form.

As this decision drags on, the advertising and technology landscapes continue to shift with artificial intelligence (AI) in the forefront. It continues to gain attention and prominence.

It would take about two years to accomplish this change. Still, at this point, the path forward seems uncertain, despite closing arguments on Friday.

Arielle Garcia, COO of Check My Ads Institute, an independent digital advertising watchdog, pointed on X to a post that outlines “the future of the open internet.”

“The DOJ’s somber reminder about the stakes of this trial are impossible to overstate,” she wrote. “Weak remedies could serve to further embolden big tech, and cause a crisis of confidence in the ability of US antitrust law to protect the market from their abuses. Yet, that is only a part of a much bigger, more optimistic picture.”

She wrote that no matter what the outcome is, this trial was a “huge win” for the future of the entire ad tech stack — advertisers, demand-side platforms, supply-side platforms, exchanges and ad tech companies.