Google is seeking to split off its advertising business into a separate company under its parent entity, Alphabet, to avoid a second antitrust lawsuit from the Justice Department, The Wall Street Journal reported July 8.
Alphabet is a holding company for Google that was created in 2015. Alphabet reported $257 billion in revenue for 2021.
The Justice Department's antitrust chief, Jonathan Kanter, has been focused on taking the antitrust lawsuit to court, according to CNBC, and it is unclear whether he will accept this concession from Google.
The Justice Department first sued Google in 2020, alleging that the company had engaged in monopolistic practices by unlawfully cutting off competitors from distribution channels, according to CNBC.