The countdown to Google’s antitrust trial has begun. If you’ve been waiting your whole live for nerdy ad tech jargon like “header bidding” “dynamic allocation,” “SSPs” and “unified pricing” to become part of the wider lexicon– well, now is your moment.
On this week’s podcast the ad tech nerds at AdExchanger serve up our analysis on what’s ahead.
In the past week, a cache of documents was released leading up to the trial. These exhibits, evidence and depositions come from internal Google emails, spreadsheets and slides. Our managing editor Allison Schiff found the diamonds in the rough, the juicy details that you will want to savor and think over before the trial begins.
Plus, we compare what’s revealed in the documents to our own coverage of Google’s header bidding products. Somehow, “Optimized Fixed CPM Bidding” has a different ring to it than project “Poirot,” one of the product changes that is a key part of the DOJ’s case against Google.
Was Poirot a bid shading tool, or part of a plot to stamp out header bidding? The revealed documents make a strong case that the true purpose of this product adjustment was to redirect revenue to Google’s own ad exchange. But we will have to wait for the trial to see how each side is able to pull together the clues revealed from dashed-off work emails and presentations.
But we will have to wait for the trial to see how each side is able to translate internal work emails and spreadsheets into a compelling argument in their favor.
