Federal judges in the United States have delivered a preliminary setback to Meta and Google over their primary income source. The rulings focus on whether the companies’ targeted advertising systems violate competition laws. Both firms have announced plans to appeal, but legal experts say the cases could reshape how digital ads operate. The decisions mark the first major courtroom tests of a long-running debate about the power of big tech platforms. Antitrust regulators have argued that the current model unfairly favors the two companies, limiting competition from smaller rivals. The cases stem from lawsuits filed by the US Department of Justice and state attorneys general. They allege that Meta’s ad tools and Google’s ad exchange restrict fair market access for other publishers and advertisers. The rulings do not impose immediate penalties but set legal precedents that could lead to forced changes in how ads are sold and priced online. Industry analysts say the outcomes may force both companies to adjust their algorithms or even dismantle parts of their ad infrastructure. The appeals process could take years, but the initial judgments have already drawn attention from European regulators reviewing similar practices. If upheld, the decisions could require both firms to share more data with competitors or cap their ad market dominance. The cases highlight growing scrutiny of how Silicon Valley’s largest platforms control digital advertising, a sector worth over $200 billion annually in the US alone.
Source: e24.no