A US federal district court has ruled that Google illegally dominates two markets for digital advertising technology. The tech giant was handed down an illegal monopoly ruling for a second time, following a similar judgment over online searches last year.



In a ruling issued on Thursday, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia concluded that Google has been "willfully acquiring and maintaining monopoly power" in two of three markets. These are the publisher, ad server and ad exchange markets for open-web display advertising.



The ruling said, "For over a decade, Google has tied its publisher ad server and ad exchange together through contractual policies and technological integration."



According to the court, the result was that, "In addition to depriving rivals of the ability to compete, this exclusionary conduct substantially harmed Google's publisher customers, the competitive process, and, ultimately, consumers of information on the open web."



Google said in a statement that it will appeal the ruling.



The Justice Department and others brought the case to court in 2023 over Google's three digital advertising technology services, claiming that the company has monopolized the markets in violation of a US antitrust law.



The ruling could affect the core of Google's business model.