North America Antitrust Digest | October 2025

A quick look at the top headlines in Antitrust and Competition

1. Google Ad Tech Remedies Hearing Concludes; Judge Urges Settlement 

2. FTC Secures $2.5 Billion Settlement Against Amazon Over Prime Subscription Practices 

3. Impact of the Government Shutdown on Antitrust Enforcement 

A breakdown of the latest news, moves and trends

Google Ad Tech Remedies Hearing Concludes; Judge Urges Settlement

On October 6, 2025, U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema concluded a two-week remedies hearing in the Google ad tech monopoly case. As we noted in the April edition of this newsletter, Judge Brinkema ruled that Google illegally maintained monopolies in two advertising markets and illegally tied its products together to make it difficult for users to switch to competitors.  

During the remedies hearing, the DOJ argued that “nothing short of a structural divestment is sufficient to bring meaningful change,” proposing that Google 1) divest its ad exchange business (AdX), 2) make the code for publisher tools publicly available, and 3) partially divest its publisher ad network (DoubleClick). Google’s lawyers argued that the DOJ’s proposal was too complicated to implement without harm to publishers and small firms that depend on Google’s technology. Instead, Google proposed behavioral remedies aimed at improving integration with competitor’s products and making it easier for publishers to use rivals’ tools.  

The technical feasibility of the proposed remedies became a central component of the hearing, with battling expert witnesses. Google’s engineering director Glenn Berntson testified that divesting the ad exchange would be “more complex than anything I’ve done in the 10 years at Google,” noting that the system receives 8.2 million requests to sell ad space every second. Government expert Goranka Bjedov, a former Google and Facebook engineer, testified that “a reasonably competent team of 80 engineers can get this done,” drawing on her experience helping integrate Instagram into Facebook after its acquisition. 

Judge Brinkema told attorneys for both sides that “my favorite phrase is ‘Let’s settle this case,’” signaling her discomfort with the prospect of untangling the highly technical systems at the heart of Google’s ad tech empire. Without a settlement, Judge Brinkema will be left in a similar position as Judge Amit Mehta previously was in the DOJ’s case against Google’s search monopoly: determining how to restructure a complex market to account for past harms. Judge Brinkema’s ruling could have significant implications for pending antitrust cases against Apple and Live Nation. 

Stay tuned: Google plans to appeal the Court’s decision on liability but must first face the judge’s ruling on remedies. Closing arguments for the remedies trial are set for November 17.  

FTC Secures $2.5 Billion Settlement Against Amazon Over Prime Subscription Practices 

On September 25, Amazon settled its case with the FTC for $2.5 billion, avoiding a trial. The historic settlement marks a significant victory for the FTC’s Consumer Protection enforcement. According to the lawsuit, Amazon allegedly enrolled tens of millions of customers in Amazon Prime subscriptions without their knowledge or consent and made Prime subscriptions difficult to cancel. 

The FTC charged Amazon and several company executives with knowingly misleading millions of consumers into enrolling in Prime, violating the FTC Act and the Restore Online Shoppers' Confidence Act (ROSCA). Amazon documents discovered in the lead up to trial showed that Amazon executives and employees knowingly discussed these unlawful enrollment and cancellation issues, calling the practice of leading consumers to unwanted subscriptions an “unspoken cancer” and the Prime cancellation process “Iliad,” a reference to the ancient Greek poem about the lengthy siege of Troy.  

Of the $2.5 billion, Amazon will pay a $1 billion civil penalty, the largest ever in a case involving an FTC rule violation. The remaining $1.5 billion will cover customer refunds. Amazon will begin its claims process for eligible Prime customers in 2026.  

Some antitrust advocates criticized the settlement as insufficient, given Amazon’s nearly $60 billion profit in 2024. Shares of Amazon were up slightly following the settlement announcement.  

Bottom Line: The combination of automatic refunds, mandatory process changes, and record-breaking penalties signals that regulators are willing to pursue significant remedies for manipulative tactics, even as broader efforts like the FTC’s “click-to-cancel” rule remain blocked in federal court. 

Developments and deals to watch

Impact of the Government Shutdown on Antitrust Enforcement 

The White House has begun laying off federal workers and threatening to eliminate back pay for furloughed employees, following through on threats made before the shutdown. It’s spurred a range of legal challenges from federal workers’ unions, and the back pay provision reinterprets a law signed by Trump during his first term. As of October 15, this order has been temporarily blocked. 

The two main federal antitrust enforcers, the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission have reduced staffing to the most critical workers during the shutdown. The FTC and DOJ will continue to coordinate in their review of Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) merger filings. Reviews and deadlines will remain, but applicants can expect delays in processing due to limited resources. 

The DOJ, through contingency funds, will continue to fund criminal enforcement and civil litigation where continuances have been denied. The FTC has suspended non-merger investigations. Deadlines for administrative litigation, Civil Investigative Demands, and subpoenas will be extended by the number of days the agency is closed for the shutdown. 

As we write this, the shutdown shows few signs of slowing, as the Senate has repeatedly failed to advance a funding bill.