EU Should Accept Google’s Ad Tech Remedies Proposal, Says ITIF
WASHINGTON—Following Google’s proposed remedies to the European Commission for allegedly abusing dominant positions for its advertising technology products, the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF), the leading think tank for science and technology policy, released the following statement from Joseph V. Coniglio, director of antitrust and innovation policy:
Google’s remedies proposal appears more than sufficient to address the EU’s competition concerns in the ad tech space. Google has agreed to stop the self-preferencing practices that the Commission found to be anticompetitive and is taking additional affirmative steps to improve interoperability in ways that will help rival ad exchanges.
The Commission’s preliminary view that it may be necessary to force Google to divest certain ad tech products was never well founded. A breakup would not just be all but unprecedented, it would also eliminate many of the synergies that exist across Google’s platform—harming the publishers and advertisers that the Commission should want to protect.
Indeed, not only would a forced divestment, taken in conjunction with the egregious €2.95 billion fine the Commission already levied, be tantamount to disgorgement, but it would ultimately work to the benefit of Chinese tech rivals who seek to dethrone the West from its global technological leadership.
As the European Union continues its long-running antitrust crusade against one of America’s most innovative companies—including yet another investigation under its flailing Digital Markets Act just days ago—the Commission has an excellent opportunity to demonstrate its commitment to the fair and non-discriminatory enforcement of its competition laws by accepting Google’s proposal.
Contact: Sydney Mack, [email protected]
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The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) is an independent, nonprofit, nonpartisan research and educational institute focusing on the intersection of technological innovation and public policy. Recognized by its peers in the think tank community as the global center of excellence for science and technology policy, ITIF’s mission is to formulate and promote policy solutions that accelerate innovation and boost productivity to spur growth, opportunity, and progress.
