who was once the head of Google’s ad business,
and Pichai personally signed off on the deal, per
the states’ complaint.
Meta spokesperson Chris Sgro said that the
company’s ad bidding agreement with Google
and similar agreements it has with other
bidding platforms “have helped to increase
competition for ad placements.”
“These business relationships enable Meta to
deliver more value to advertisers while fairly
compensating publishers, resulting in better
outcomes for all,” Sgro said.
Internally, Google used the code phrase “Jedi Blue”
to refer to the 2018 agreement, according to the
lawsuit. Google kept this code phrase secret.
Google’s Schottenfels said the lawsuit’s
allegation that Pichai approved the deal with
Facebook “isn’t accurate.”
“We sign hundreds of agreements every year
that don’t require CEO approval, and this was no
different,” he said, adding that the agreement “was
never a secret.”
The lawsuit is led by Texas Attorney General Ken
Paxton and was joined by the attorneys general of
Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky,
Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nevada,
North Dakota, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, South
Dakota and Utah.