Could Amazon’s Ad Business Become An FTC Target?
If you had been paying attention to all the various lawsuits and federal cases pending against big tech (and there sure are a lot), you knew it was coming. Yet it was still a shock – Google lost, and was officially named as an anti-trust violator this week by a federal judge. This case was specifically about Google abusing its power by squeezing competitors out of search distribution deals. What that means for advertising in the near term is unclear – as the bigger hammer is set to come down next month, when the other Google anti-trust case – the ad-tech one – lands.
While we wait to see if that one leads to a Google breakup, there are lot more cases to come, including one against Amazon. The Amazon case is focused on Amazon’s core ecommerce business. But one wonders: Given that Google may be forced to separate ad selling from programmatic, and that Amazon suddenly has a massive – some would say monopolistic – ad business on its platform, that it could face a similar push.
Of course, that would mean that the FTC moves quickly – which is something that just doesn’t seem to be in its DNA. More likely, they force Amazon to divest its ad platform in 2032.
Other news this week:
After Google Antitrust Ruling, Here’s Where Other Big Tech Cases Stand - Cecilia Kang and David McCabe [New York Times]
Uber Ads just became a $1 billion business — and it has plenty of room to grow - Lara O'Reilly [Business Insider]
Lowe’s rebrands retail media network - Dan Berthiaume [Chain Store Age]
Best Buy Refreshes Brand for the Age of AI, Introducing 'Spokeshologram' - Kathryn Lundstrom [Adweek]
