Observed Signal · Feb 13, 2026 · Regulation · Source: AdExchanger · Impact: 5/5 · Sentiment: Negative
EU Investigates Google's Ad Tactics Amid News Funding Debate
The EU has opened a new antitrust probe into Google over allegations it manipulated search-ad auctions to “artificially increase the clearing price,” according to a letter reported by Bloomberg. Google defended its real-time auction system in a statement but did not explicitly deny the allegation. The story recalls testimony from the U.S. DOJ’s 2023 search antitrust trial in which Jerry Dischler (then GM and VP of Google Ads) said Google raised ad prices by up to 10% when needed to meet revenue targets. Separately, a Pew Research survey of more than 3,500 U.S. adults found 83% hadn’t paid for news in the prior year; only 11% think subscriptions should be publishers’ main revenue source, while 45% say advertising should fund news. The roundup also highlights broader ad-market dynamics, including consumer spending divergence (a “K-shaped” economy) that affects reach and monetization strategies for advertisers and publishers.
An EU antitrust probe into Google’s search-ad auction practices targets the dominant platform that underpins a large portion of programmatic search ad revenue; findings or remedies could materially change pricing, auction mechanics, publisher revenues and regulatory scrutiny across the ad-tech ecosystem.
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- The European Union opened an antitrust probe into Google over allegations it rigged search ad auctions to increase the clearing price (reported by Bloomberg).
- Google said search ad prices are determined by a real-time auction factoring advertiser competition and ad quality and did not directly refute the allegations.
- In the 2023 DOJ search antitrust trial, Jerry Dischler testified Google would raise ad prices by up to 10% when needed to meet investor revenue expectations, a practice he called “shaking the couch cushions.”
- A Pew Research survey of more than 3,500 U.S. adults found 83% had not paid for news in the past year; 45% said advertising should fund news and 11% said subscriptions should be the main revenue stream for news organizations.
- Roughly 40% of local news outlets have shuttered in the past 20 years (as cited in the roundup).
Connected Companies & Entities
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Google's Buy-Side Antitrust Problem: Third-Price Auctions
The article argues that scrutiny has focused on Google’s sell-side antitrust concerns while buy-side practices remain underexamined. It notes DV360 as the largest DSP but with under 50% market share, and positions Google Ads as competing with Meta, Amazon, and TikTok for advertiser budgets. Civil cases are referenced as evidence of anti-competitive buy-side behavior, including “third-price auctions” during AdWords bidding into AdX. The piece details how Google’s quant team allegedly solved low auction competition by feeding the top two AdWords bids into AdX, causing the winning bid to be priced near the second bid. It states that more than 90% of AdWords spend goes to AdX, with an estimated $6B of spend per year affected by these practices (about $30B over a decade). The narrative notes this mechanism persisted until 2018 and suggests potential treble damages under the Sherman Act, framing a significant liability risk for Google and broader buy-side exposure in AdTech.
Asos confirms data breach after rogue app notification
UK fashion retailer Asos has confirmed a data breach involving customers' personal information. Hackers broke into a third-party platform hosting data used for customer communications, stealing names, contact information, home addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, and customer profile notes including search queries. The hackers, calling themselves Xuanye Group, sent an unauthorized push notification through Asos' own app, referencing the compromise of data hosted on Snowflake, a cloud data platform. The notification pressured the company to engage or risk a leak. The attackers reportedly gained access by impersonating a trusted contact to obtain login credentials. Snowflake said its own systems were not breached. Asos has 17 million customers. The incident follows a similar breach at fintech firm Betterment earlier in the year.
Streaming's Cloud, AI, and the Two Market Faces
This article examines the US and UK streaming markets, highlighting their shared technological foundation in cloud and AI, but different strategic priorities shaped by regulation and market structure. The US focuses on monetization and advertising, while the UK balances public service values with commercial growth. Key trends include AI-driven personalization, the rise of agentic AI, and the shift from audience-based to moment-based advertising. Major events like the 2026 UK Media Act, Netflix's ad-tier passing 250 million users, and Sky's acquisition of ITV's media arm exemplify market-specific dynamics. The future lies in 'intelligent rebundling' where owning the customer relationship and intelligence layer is key. Cloud and media experts Rahul Bhatia and Hemant Soni discussed these differences, noting that US platforms prioritize scale, sports, and first-party data, while UK regulations shape design from the start. Architectural decisions involve designing for peaks using serverless, and AI is a revenue engine. Emerging trends include AI-generated films and potential charges for cloud storage.
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