Canadian Anti-Trust Authority Demands Google to Dismantle Its Ad Empire

• Canada’s Competition Bureau is taking legal action against Google over alleged anti-competitive conduct in online advertising.
• The watchdog body argues that Google’s dominant position in the sector has been maintained and entrenched through unfair practices, distorting the competitive environment.

Canada’s Competition Bureau alleges that Google has abused its dominant position in online, programmatic web advertising to maintain its market power, potentially distorting the competitive landscape.

Specifically, the Bureau accuses Google of giving its tools preferential access to online ad inventory and disadvantaging rival platforms. In extreme cases, the company is said to have dictated the terms by which its own customers could transact with competing ad tech companies. In response to these claims, the Bureau seeks to force Google to sell two of its ad tech tools and pay a penalty.

At the heart of the issue is digital ad inventory, which is usually purchased and sold through automated auctions using sophisticated platforms known as ad tech tools. The entire suite of tools used throughout the transaction process is known as the ad tech stack. According to the Bureau’s investigation, Google is the largest provider across this ad tech stack in Canada.

The Bureau’s actions aim to rectify the perceived distortions caused by Google’s conduct, which it believes inhibits innovation, inflates advertising costs, and reduces publishers’ revenues. The case is yet to be decided by the Competition Tribunal. The Bureau has also provided a backgrounder with more information on its website.

Matthew Boswell, Commissioner of Competition, is quoted as saying that the Bureau’s investigation found that Google’s conduct has prevented rivals from competing on merit to the detriment of Canadian advertisers, publishers, and consumers. The Bureau aims to halt this conduct and its harmful effects in Canada.