Nine passes left to attend the Digiday Publishing Summit
Magnite issued its latest financial results yesterday, revealing that it generated more than $173 million in revenue, a 6% increase year over year, during the three months ended June 30.
However, it was Magnite CEO Michael Barrett’s unexpected remarks about what may happen in 2026, given developments of the ongoing Google antitrust trial, the one where its ad server and supply-side platform are in the dock, which caused investors’ ears to perk up.
Understandably, for an audience of Wall Street equities analysts, the company was eager to champion its market positioning, particularly in CTV, due to its modular product stack, although it was a statement harking back to its roots in programmatic display advertising that stood out.
Barrett discussed the uncertainty around the impact of Google’s legal issues and civil damages, stating that they are monitoring the situation closely, particularly as the remedies phase of its ad tech trial commences next month.
In a prepared statement, Barrett noted that if presiding Judge Brinkema should rule in favor of any behavioral changes in how Google’s ad stack operates, aside from any structural remedies, this is likely to prove a boon for Magnite.
“When the remedies are put forth, we’ll probably have a stronger opinion,” he told the assembled listeners. “And as it relates to any possible litigation and a civil action, I will just stick with the verbiage that we used in the script that we’re looking at, and we think there’s a lot of merit there.”
Also on the call was Magnite’s chief legal officer Aaron Slatz, who noted that “we can’t really comment any further on timing or specific intentions, other than we’re obviously considering all of our options, and we do think there’s a lot of merit.”
Any such legal action would bring Magnite in line with several others, including publisher Gannett which filed a case against Google in 2023, as well as its fellow SSP OpenX.
Earlier this week, OpenX filed a federal antitrust lawsuit against Google, similarly accusing the tech giant of abusing its dominance in digital advertising through a decade-long pattern of self-preferencing and anti-competitive conduct.
Filed in the same Virginia court overseeing the DOJ’s ad tech case, i.e., the Eastern District of Virginia, the suit claims Google tied access to advertiser demand on AdX to its ad server DoubleClick For Publishers, manipulated auctions, and suppressed rival SSPs from competing fairly for ad impressions.
Speaking subsequently with Digiday, OpenX CEO alleged this behavior caused direct business harm and is seeking damages and structural remedies. While Digiday was unable to contact a Google spokesperson by press time, the company’s defense team has earlier outlined its rebuttals of similar charges made by the DOJ.
The timeline for any potential developments is unclear.
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