LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - Alphabet's main operating division Google is set to face a €25bn (£21.68bn) lawsuit in the UK and the European Union, it emerged on Tuesday, amid accusations of anti-competitive behaviour in digital advertising.
Belgian law firm Geradin Partners and UK-based Humphries Kerstetter are respectively bringing cases in the EU and the UK, according to the Guardian.

Google is accused of abusing its gargantuan power in the advertising technology sector, managing the sale and placement of online display ads with both advertisers and content publishers.

"Publishers, including local and national news media who play a vital role in our society, have long been harmed by Google's anticompetitive conduct," the Guardian quoted Damien Geradin of Geradin Partners as saying.

"It is time that Google owns up to its responsibilities and pays back the damages it has caused to this important industry.

"That is why today we are announcing these actions across two jurisdictions to obtain compensation for EU and UK publishers."

Humphries Kerstetter partner Toby Starr, meanwhile, said the claim was aiming to benefit more than just news publishers, as its goal was to recover advertising revenue allegedly lost due to Google's conduct.

The UK claim would be 'opt-out', meaning affected parties would be treated as claimants automatically, while the EU claim - being brought in the Netherlands - would be 'opt-in'.

Together, the lawsuits were seeking total compensation that could reach an estimated €25bn, and were being funded by British and Dutch litigation financing firms.

"Google works constructively with publishers across Europe - our advertising tools, and those of our many adtech competitors, help millions of websites and apps fund their content, and enable businesses of all sizes to effectively reach new customers," a Google spokesperson said.

"These services adapt and evolve in partnership with those same publishers.

"This lawsuit is speculative and opportunistic - when we receive the complaint, we'll fight it vigorously."

The civil action comes as the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) also probes the internet giant's power and reach in the digital ad tech sector.

Reporting by Josh White at Sharecast.com.

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