The UK Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) has certified the class action brought by Ad Tech Collective Action LLP on behalf of UK publishers against Google.[1] The case alleges Google abused its dominance in digital advertising, which has harmed UK publishers’ income, claiming damages up to £13.6 billion.
Publishers (websites and apps) are able to monetise their content by placing ads on their webpages or within their apps. This involves engaging with advertisers via a series of intermediaries and transactions that occurs within milliseconds. The claim states that Google configured its particular advertising entities (its ad server (DoubleClick for Publishers/DFP) and ad auction platform (AdX)) to favour its own over rivals’.
As a result, UK publishers suffered from lower prices at which their ads were sold and higher commission charges (take rates) than would have been in a competitive market. There were additional losses caused in the alternative option of direct sales (“umbrella effect”) and that absent these abuses, the harms would persist for the long term as rivals will never be able to recover fully (“overhang damages”).
Google’s three self-preferencing abuses are asserted to be interconnected (a single continuous infringement) and MOW welcomes the CAT’s preliminary assessment that not all abuses need to be made out since this would be “oppressive to the class’ access to justice”[2].
This private action comes at a time where Google is already under fire for its conduct in ad tech in numerous ongoing cases (see the CMA’s[3], European Commission’s[4] and US DOJ’s cases[5]). MOW supports the CAT’s judgment and encourages UK publishers to contact us to find out more.
[1] https://www.catribunal.org.uk/cases/15727722-15827723-ad-tech-collective-action-llp
[2] See para 35 of CAT judgment
[3] https://www.gov.uk/cma-cases/investigation-into-suspected-anti-competitive-conduct-by-google-in-ad-tech
[4] https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/api/files/document/print/en/ip_23_3207/IP_23_3207_EN.pdf
[5] https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-sues-google-monopolizing-digital-advertising-technologies