Google admitted in court that the "open internet" is in decline

Yevgeny Demkivskyi - 9 September, 02:08 PM

In a new court filing related to a case about a monopoly in the ad technology market, Google said that “the open web is rapidly declining.” This contradicts the company’s public statements in recent months, in which it insisted that the internet is “thriving” and that search continues to direct users to a wider range of sites, writes The Verge.

The case against Google is being considered as part of an antitrust lawsuit over the advertising technology market. The Justice Department is proposing to forcefully separate the company's advertising business, but Google argues in the document that such a move would only accelerate the decline of the "open web" and harm publishers who depend on banner advertising revenue. In the submission, the company points to structural changes in the industry: the rise of Connected TV and retail media, as well as the impact of AI on all levels of advertising technology.

This position contradicts statements by Google CEO Sundar Pichai, who said that "web publishing is not dying" and VP of search Nick Fox, who at the time said that "the web is thriving." Google Search head Liz Reid also claimed that click volumes have remained "relatively stable" since the launch of AI Overviews, and the company "drives billions of clicks every day" to sites.

At the same time, many publishers and independent authors are reporting a drop in traffic after changes to Google Search algorithms and the rise of AI chatbots that keep users within the search limits. By the way, you can read about how artificial intelligence affects the Internet and changes Google services in a separate article.

Google spokesperson Jackie Berthe told The Verge that the quote from the filing was "taken out of context" and only applies to "advertising on the open web" and not the state of the internet in general. She said the company was simply stating that investment in formats like Connected TV and retail media is increasing, offsetting the loss of traditional banner advertising.