Newly released internal Google papers from the tech giant’s ongoing antitrust trial show how it tries to keep its lead in the digital advertising market by making deals for secrecy and connecting its ad-tech businesses.
The US Department of Justice says that internal Google messages released on day seven of the Google antitrust trial support its claim that the company unfairly linked its ad-tech businesses together to keep a stranglehold on the industry. The papers showed that Google workers knew that AdX, the company’s publication ad exchange, relied on having exclusive access to only Google’s clients to stay ahead of the competition.
In an internal memo about the pros and cons of letting third parties buy ad space, Google workers said they were worried that “many publishers would cancel their AdX relationship in favor of their chosen vendors” if AdX lost its exclusivity with Google’s marketers.
This new information shows how important advertising exclusivity is to Google’s plan to keep its market place. Google leaders put a lot of value on crushing the competition, as shown by internal emails that were shown in court.
In court, more proof showed that people thought Google’s own buy-side tools were less useful because they were only available on the company’s AdX. Google workers were talking among themselves and said they thought the buy side was “subsidizing” the selling side, which “greatly weakens GDN’s standing in the market.” Google Display Network, or GDN, is the name of Google’s business that sells display ads.
An internal test from 2014 showed how much Google depends on its exclusivity deals. It showed that the company’s income would drop by 70% if Google’s ad network did not bid on AdX inventory.
