They think it's all over: Google's trial hurtles to an early end

Google's ad trial was listed for up to six weeks but may be over before half-time as the judge lambasts its witnesses as useless...

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Let’s head back to the US antitrust court because the no-messing judge has had enough of Google’s defence, and it ain’t pretty.

Let’s go…

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The blockbuster Google ads antitrust trial looks likely to end weeks early after the testy judge launched a series of attacks on the search giant’s witnesses yesterday.

Just two days into Google’s defence, Judge Leonie Brinkema repeatedly criticised the legal team and witnesses for wasting the court’s time not moving the case forward.

Brinkema, who has a reputation as a no-nonsense judge, is sitting in a US court known as the rocket docket for getting the job done fast.

Google’s main witness yesterday was former head of ad quality Nitish Korula. He testified that publishers were never forced to use AdX, and all were vetted.

He then focused on features and brand safety protections that Google delivered to advertisers.

Observers in court have noted how much Google’s focus has been on advertisers, and not ad agencies, or ad exchanges.

Lawyer Tom Blakely, reporting for Big Tech on Trial, said: “Competing ad exchanges seem to simply not be a concern of Google’s - in business, or in this case.

“After all, advertisers are their prized customers because they provide the bulk of the revenue.

“On the other hand, ad exchanges and ad agencies, to an extent, are rivals they’re just not interested in dealing with.”

The Department of Justice alleges that Google has an unavoidable monopoly in digital advertising.

It accuses the company of “tying” its ad server, ad network and ad exchange together so advertisers and publishers have no option but to use them all.

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It points to evidence over the past fortnight that:

1. Google has a 91 per cent share of the global ad server market.
2. Its auction tool Google Ads controls 87 per cent of global ad demand.
3. Its ad exchange AdX trades 56 per cent of the world’s ads.

The DoJ began its cross-examination of Mr Korula so aggressively that the judge had to ask the lawyer to lower his voice.

It then revealed internal Google analysis naming AppNexus as its only rival, and a “weakness” was publishers believed Google acted “unilaterally” in its own interest.

Google then presented three more witnesses, but the judge lost patience and brought the evidence to an end early, telling Google the witnesses added little.

The evidence in court was so repetitive that Arielle Garcia, reporting in court, prepared a crossword to keep them entertained.

Big Tech on Trial added: “I wanted Google to make it interesting. I know they have the ability, and I know there are arguments for them to make.

“Google’s legal team is in many ways, a dream team, full of the most expensive big name lawyers corporations can buy.

“These are the best of the best, from the best firms, the best law schools, and of whom we would have the highest expectations.

“And so it is entirely baffling to me, and to others, the fact that, two days into Google’s case, and potentially 48 hours from the end of it, as well as the end of this trial - Google does not seem to have a case to match the government blow for blow.”

The trial, initially listed for four to six weeks, is only three weeks in but may now end by the end of this week.

Google denies the DoJ’s ad monopoly allegations. Earlier this year, it lost an antitrust trial over its search text ads monopoly.

Given Google’s witnesses were so dull, let’s liven it up with what we know from the previous evidence.

Ready? Deep breath, and…

1. Google has a 91 per cent share of the global ad server market.
2. Google banked US$238 last year - 87.5 per cent of it came from ads.
3. Its auction tool Google Ads controls 87 per cent of global ad demand.
4. Its ad exchange AdX trades 56 per cent of the world’s ads.
5. It delivers 13 billion ads a day to publishers worldwide.
6. Nine in 10 global publishers rely on it.
7. So do eight in 10 of the world’s advertisers.
8. Two fifths of global video ads are traded there.
9. Google Ads locks ~83 per cent of Google Ads into its own auctions.
10. Publishers who want the ads have no option but to use Google ad tech.
11. Four in five of News Corp’s ad dollars come through GAM.
12. Three in five of Daily Mail’s ads come from Google.
13. The DoJ alleges this “tying” makes Google unavoidable.
14. The Daily Mail gave up leaving Google as it would cost US$4 million-a-year.
15. News Corp dropped the same plan because it would lose $9 million a year.
16. Lost ad revenue led to job losses and cuts at News Corp and Daily Mail.
17. USA Today’s publisher said collapsing ads forced it to fire 22,000 employees.
18. Google’s prices are “sky high” because it needs to keep growing.
19. It charges a 36 per cent levy on every ad traded through its tech.
20. These fees are double those of its rivals, and they are unregulated.
21. They are 10x the fees charged by credit cards, which are regulated.
22. It now banks the global earnings of all global publishers every three days.

Be back to it tomorrow as it wraps up and we begin the countdown to a verdict.

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