Google faces €25bn lawsuit over ‘anticompetitive’ behaviour

In brief

A multi-billion pound lawsuit is being brought against Google in the UK and EU in which the tech behemoth stands accused of anticompetitive conduct in the digital advertising market.

Google is accused of abusing its power in the adtech market. The combined suits are seeking total compensation that, according to estimates from legal representatives, could reach €25bn.

The suits are being financed by litigation funding firms in the UK and the Netherlands, which would take a cut of any proceeds from a legal victory.

“Publishers, including local and national news media who play a vital role in our society, have long been harmed by Google’s anticompetitive conduct,” said Damien Geradin, of the Belgian law firm Geradin Partners, which is involved in the EU case.

A spokesperson for Google said: “Google works constructively with publishers across Europe — our advertising tools, and those of our many adtech competitors, help millions of websites and apps fund their content, and enable businesses of all sizes to effectively reach new customers. These services adapt and evolve in partnership with those same publishers. This lawsuit is speculative and opportunistic. When we receive the complaint, we’ll fight it vigorously.”