Auctions under regulatory scrutiny

Judge Leonie Brinkema ruled Google will not have to spin off its ad tech business but will face behavioural remedies, including letting publishers set higher floors for some buyers and share more auction data, while the FTC separately sued Amazon over an alleged shadow bidder.

The crux

Two of the biggest ad platforms are being forced, or sued, over how they run their auctions, and the fight is moving from ownership to conduct and transparency.

Sell-side read

Higher floors and auction-data sharing are the first concrete levers publishers have had in a decade to test Google's pricing power.

Watch

The final judgment text, due within 30 days, and Google's appeal of the underlying liability ruling.