bGoogle has been once again hit with a lawsuit from 10 states which accuses it of breaking anti-trust law. Texas General Ken Paxton is leading the charge against the Alphabet Inc-owned Google. The lawsuit is related to search giant’s ad tech business which has been often accused of anticompetitive business because of its unrivaled volume and size. According to the lawsuit, internal documents of Google showed that it tried to crush competitions. The tactics include a deal with its biggest competitor Facebook to manipulate advertising auctions. As part of the agreement, Google got access to end-to-end encrypted WhatsApp messages of millions of Americans. The 130-page lawsuit stated that it will ensure that the search giant won’t be evil anymore. “The Supreme Court had warned about it and the litigation filed by us will establish the Alphabet-owned company is guilty of such antitrust evils.”
Attorney General Ken Paxton said that he is proud to announce that they have filed a lawsuit against Google. “Google has used its monopolistic power to rig auctions and control pricing,” Paxton said in a video shared on Twitter. The Attorney General said that Google used its power to harm the consumer and destroy competition. “It is not fair that Google effectively crushed its competition and declared itself as the leader of online advertising. These actions harm every American,” Paxton added. The suit comes close on the heels of an antitrust lawsuit filed by the Department of Justice and 11 US states.
Google Marketing Platform controls the most important pieces of the online advertising marketplace. It was previously known as DoubleClick. It is a premier tool that helps online publishers in creating, tracking, and manages online marketing campaigns. The suit by the DOJ targeted deals that Google had with browser developers, device makers like Apple, and wireless carriers. Google is expected to face another lawsuit soon that will be lead by the attorneys general of Colorado and Nebraska.