Canada's Competition Bureau sues Google over alleged anti-competitive conduct in online advertising, seeking Google to sell two of its ad tech tools and more

Reuters 2024-11-30 Ismail Shakil

Context & Ripple Effects

The action follows the bureau's expanded examination of Google's online-ad practices, including whether pricing conduct could weaken competition. It marks a sharper escalation from investigation to a request for structural remedies.

Canada's case also lands after the UK CMA objected to Google using display-ad strength to favor its own services, putting similar questions about vertically integrated ad-tech systems before multiple regulators.

First-order effects

Google must defend its ad-tech conduct in Canada against a remedy request that includes selling two tools; the Competition Bureau has raised the stakes beyond an inquiry.
Advertisers, publishers, and ad-tech customers face uncertainty over whether the tools they use could be subject to court-ordered changes, though no divestiture is immediate.

Second-order effects

The case gives rival ad-tech providers and large market participants a concrete regulatory proceeding to watch, especially where they compete with Google across the ad-buying and ad-serving stack.
A structural-remedy request can make commercial planning more cautious for customers that rely on integrated Google services, even before any judicial outcome.

Third-order effects

If authorities substantiate these claims and win meaningful remedies, ad-tech enforcement could move from behavioral commitments toward separating parts of vertically integrated platforms.
Parallel scrutiny in Canada and the UK suggests that the competitive effects of integrated ad-tech ownership are becoming a recurring cross-jurisdiction enforcement question, although each case will turn on its own record.

The trend: Ad-tech antitrust scrutiny is increasingly testing whether dominant platforms can operate multiple connected layers of the digital advertising market without disadvantaging rivals.

Discussion

@carnage4life Dare Obasanjo on threads
Barely a week after the US DOJ recommended that Google sell Chrome as a penalty for its anti-competitive behavior in web search, the Canadian antitrust agency has recommended that Google sell both DoubleClick for publisher and its AdX ad server due to anticompetitive behavior in …
@kint.bsky.social Jason Kint on bluesky
In steps 🇨🇦, I had noted their Justice Department attended the US v Google trial in September. It appears they determined it was a strong complaint and are set to protect and defend their own markets from Google's alleged harms, too. Bravo. www.canada.ca/en/competiti... [image…
@compbureau @compbureau on x
We are suing Google for anti-competitive conduct in online advertising technology services in 🇨🇦. Our investigation found that Google has abused its dominant position to the detriment of Canadian advertisers, publishers and consumers. https://www.canada.ca/... 1/2 [image]
@khushitavasant @khushitavasant on x
Never a dull moment on the #BigTech front. Canada's @CompBureau sues @Google over tying, self-preferencing behavior in adtech market. Competition Bureau seeks forced sale of Google's two adtech tools. Google says complaint ignores “intense” competition in market. #antitrust [imag…
@chrispavlovski Chris Pavlovski on x
Wow, I would not want to be Google.
@mediamorphis Dwayne Winseck on x
Wow, Canada's Competition Bureau has just sued Google for anti-competitive behavior, seeks to have Google divest 2 core parts of its ad exchange system & other penalties. Notes harms to Canadians & ad funded media denied fair cut of ad revenue. https://www.canada.ca/...
@jason_kint Jason Kint on x
It appears 🇨🇦 determined it was a strong complaint and are set to protect and defend their own markets from Google's alleged harms, too. Bravo. Full announcement here. https://www.canada.ca/...
@mgeist Michael Geist on x
Canada's Competition Bureau is going after Google: suing for anti-competitive conduct and wants to break up its ad-tech business. https://www.canada.ca/... [image]
@jason_kint Jason Kint on x
Bam. Not a huge surprise as their Justice Department quietly attended US v Google trial in Sept. This adds another major enforcer to list of state AGs, US DOJ, and EU cases playing out. [image]
@paulvieira Paul Vieira on x
Canada is getting into a habit of unveiling major news affecting US tech companies on US holidays. On July 4, Canada officially said it would enact DST. On US Thanksgiving, Canada said it is suing Google for allegedly unlawful, anti-competitive behavior in online ad market.
r/technology r on reddit
Canada's antitrust watchdog sues Google alleging anti-competitive conduct in advertising

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