Alphabet Shares Face Pressure as New Antitrust Battle Commences

Legal Challenge Targets Advertising Business Model

Alphabet Inc. experienced a sharp reversal in fortune this week. After reaching a record high on Friday, the company’s shares retreated on Monday as a significant new antitrust proceeding got underway in Virginia. This legal challenge targets the core of Google’s advertising technology empire, dampening investor sentiment that had recently been buoyed by a favorable outcome in a separate monopoly case.

The proceedings, overseen by District Judge Leonie Brinkema, center on allegations that Google’s ad tech practices constitute an illegal monopoly, harming online publishers. The judge has already ruled that parts of Google’s advertising systems violate antitrust law. The current phase of the trial, expected to last two weeks, will determine the appropriate penalties.