Google Almost Cut Ad Exchange Fees Ahead of Antitrust Crackdown
- Company’s 20% fee is highest in industry, witnesses say
- Former executives testified at Justice Department trial
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Eight years ago, Google debated slashing the fees for its advertising exchange — the highest in the industry — after websites developed a way to boost online ad revenue while bypassing the company’s tools, former executives testified as part of a US Justice Department antitrust trial.
Websites selling display ads had developed a new technology, known as header bidding, to try and counter Google’s high fee structure and squeeze more revenue from the transactions. The Alphabet Inc. unit never cut its 20% fee, and instead developed a modified version of the technology in 2019.