DOJ Rules Google Operated an Illegal Monopoly Through Its Advertising Products

The American Department of Justice just completed prosecution in the high-profile Google antitrust case. This is where the judge ruled that Google was guilty of operating a monopoly with its advertising products.

The court shared how the anticompetitive practices enabled it to dominate other crucial components of the massive digital advertising world for nearly 10 years. More details shared included how the American District Judge explained how the Android maker chose to intentionally engage in the most anticompetitive actions.

Google worked hard to establish a mighty control over the publisher ad servers and advertising exchange world. It similarly unlawfully chose to link its publisher advertising servers and advertising exchanges as one through different contracts and tech linking.

Such practices really caused serious harm to publishers and people around the internet.

This is important for Google as it marks the company’s second biggest antitrust loss after losing the case related to monopoly in search before. As a result, many see the world of online ads altering after such a ruling.

The US DOJ continued to argue more about how Google tried to practice monopoly behavior in three separate markets of the ad tech space. One was publisher advertising tools, next it was advertiser ad networks, and lastly it was the advertising exchanges that assist with transactions amongst those.

The case is now based on how the tech giant’s dominance gave rise to significant profits as they try to fight back against the claims. The Android maker shared its reply to the ruling on the X app.

Google mentioned how many of its tools don’t impact competition and that they don’t agree with this decision being made by the court of law. Google also reminded the public that they did end up winning 50% of this case and will now opt to appeal the rest.

Google claims its ad tools and acquisitions didn’t impact competition. They disagree with the ruling about their publisher tools. It also sent a reminder about how many choices there are and how nobody is forced to opt in and use them if they don’t want to. But the majority do turn to Google as their advertising products are not only cheap, effective, but also simple in use.

The tech giant also shared how the definition of the market, which is shared by the government, is contrived and how it failed to reflect the reality of the situation. The firm then argued how integrated tools benefit clients and have real business justifications.

The ruling comes as the company and the Department of Justice start preparing solutions on how to combat the matter. There is a proposition to break up Google by separating Chrome and making it responsible for the control of its search results. The court shared how it would need to figure out the right solution for the company’s advertising monopoly violation. So we might be seeing some major structural changes in the current ad business model.

Image: DIW-Aigen

Read next: Why America Is "Tech Hoarding" — and It's Not the Economy
by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

Why America Is "Tech Hoarding" — and It's Not the Economy

If you’re like most of us, you probably have a junk drawer — or box, or bin, or dedicated corner of the garage. In this day and age, it might look like a graveyard of gadgets past: a tangled nest of mystery cords, chargers for long-gone devices, old phones, maybe even a stray Blu-Ray disc or flash drive.

Nobody needs tech junk, but so many of us keep it. In fact, a recent study by Secure Data found that a staggering 94% of Americans have their own hoards at home. So why is this pretty much useless stuff so hard to get rid of? Is it just that old axiom — as soon as it’s gone, you’ll suddenly need it — hanging over our heads?

While it’s easy to point fingers at economic uncertainty as a reason for holding onto, well, everything, Secure Data’s findings suggest something deeper is at play when it comes to our electronic relics. We cling to our retired tech for potential usefulness (or the illusion of it), sentimental value, and anxiety over our increasingly compromised personal data.

The “Just In Case” Thinking Trap

The most common reason cited for keeping old tech according to Secure Data’s survey is the belief that it might be useful again someday. Despite the fact that planned obsolescence is a confirmed driver of the tech industry, a whopping 69% of respondents harbor the hope that they’ll magically find new uses for their outdated devices.

This also explains why charging cords top the list of the most hoarded items, with 87% of people admitting to keeping them. Who hasn’t experienced the frustration of needing a specific, obscure charger for something that won’t power on otherwise? Other heavily hoarded items include old smartphones (79%), headphones (75%), laptops (69%), and even DVDs (74%).

The study highlights what’s probably a relatable behavior: holding onto specialty or proprietary cables for gadgets we no longer even own, just in case. It speaks to a fear of future need, the reluctance to discard something that might, theoretically, solve a problem that would otherwise be unresolvable down the line.

• Also read: Digital Fatigue: A Third of Americans Willing To Trade Security for Convenience

Never mind the fact that the corresponding device is long gone or that technology keeps marching relentlessly forward, rendering both cord and gadget obsolete. The potential utility, however slim, outweighs the need to declutter. That ancient MP3 player charger isn’t likely to bring back your listening habits from 2005, yet into the box it goes.

The Powerful Pull of Nostalgia

Following close behind the (albeit questionable) practicality of technological preparedness as a driver for tech hoarding is nostalgia. Nearly two-thirds of Americans surveyed admit that they hoard old tech because they’re attached to it and just can’t bear to let go.

Our devices aren’t just tools; they become intertwined with our memories and life experiences. That first digital camera might hold photos from a middle school modeling session. An old gaming console could evoke rainy afternoons spent having fun with siblings. A retired smartphone might contain special text messages from a loved one.

In that way, tech serves as a tangible link to our past selves and experiences. Holding onto an old camcorder isn’t just about keeping the hardware or powering it on to try using it again — it’s about preserving the feeling associated with the old home movies it captured.

In an increasingly digital and often intangible world (hello, VR), these physical artifacts — even if they no longer function — offer a comforting anchor to personal history.

Security Fears and Digital Footprints

Beyond these motives lies a decidedly modern, and perhaps more pressing, concern: personal data. The third most common reason for hoarding is the belief that the devices contain sensitive personal information.

In an era acutely aware of data breaches and identity theft, the idea of simply tossing a hard drive or old phone into the trash feels reckless. Some of us hold onto our tech simply because of the data it holds.

Secure Data also found that more than half of Americans do this even if they have their data backed up elsewhere. This points to some deeper anxieties: a lack of trust in backup methods, uncertainty about how to securely wipe a device, or maybe an unfounded bias that the original device holding the data is somehow more secure or complete than a copy.

Who among us hasn’t sweated, at least a little bit, deleting important files even after we’ve backed them up? And the process of securely erasing data can be pretty daunting itself, leading many people to just stick their devices in the drawer indefinitely.

Other Hoarding Habits

For one in two people, the hope that their old tech might be valuable in the future is enough justification to keep it. While it’s occasionally true for rare items, most mass-produced consumer electronics depreciate rapidly. Yet the “maybe someday” thought persists, fueled by stories of collectible gaming cartridges or iconic early computers.

Other common hoarding behaviors identified include keeping outdated media like CDs, DVDs, or even floppy disks (remember those?), despite over 40% of said hoarders lacking the hardware to use them. Nearly two-fifths hang onto original packaging, too, perhaps believing it enhances potential resale value or simply because it feels wrong to discard the complete set.

And then there are the eternal optimists: Nearly a third of people are saving broken tech with the intention of repairing it someday. Will that “someday” ever come? The jury’s out, but the intention is enough to keep the item from hitting the curb.

This ties back to the overarching reluctance to waste something that was probably pretty expensive to buy, or represents some kind of potential functionality, however locked away it is.

Letting Go of Devices Past

Ultimately, Secure Data’s survey shows that America’s tech hoarding habit is about far more than economic prudence. It’s a tangled web of perceived utility, nostalgia, legitimate data security fears, speculative future value, and, perhaps above all, the sheer inertia of figuring out what to do with objects we once valued.

Not to get too philosophical, but maybe discarding them feels like discarding a part of ourselves — or maybe we’re just genuinely too lazy to drag those five laptops to the one dedicated recycling plant in town.

In any case, understanding why we feel compelled to hang onto tech is the first step toward getting out from under the hoard. So the next time you try to tackle that junk drawer, think about the reasons you’re still holding on — they might just help you finally let go.

Read next: Emotional Needs Drive AI Use, Leaving Marketing Tasks Far Behind

by Irfan Ahmad via Digital Information World

Google’s 2024 Ads Safety Report: 39.2M Suspended Accounts, 5.1B Ads Removed, and 90% Drop in Deepfakes

Tech giant Google recently unveiled impressive results from its AI-powered advertising safety initiatives. The company's 2024 Ads Safety report highlights significant progress achieved through advanced language models scanning suspicious content.

Security teams at Google deployed over fifty sophisticated AI systems throughout their advertising network last year. These enhanced tools now handle nearly all enforcement actions, about 97 percent, while requiring significantly less data to identify violations effectively.

Account suspensions skyrocketed in 2024, with 39.2 million advertiser profiles shut down for fraudulent behavior. This figure represents more than triple the previous year's enforcement total of 12.7 million suspended accounts. Most shutdowns stemmed from network abuse, data misuse, false health claims, or trademark violations.

Removed advertisements decreased slightly to 5.1 billion worldwide (1.8 billion in America), down from 5.5 billion in 2023. Security experts attribute this reduction primarily to faster account suspension, often catching violators before publishing their first advertisement.

Tackling artificial intelligence misuse became another priority. Google assembled a specialized group of 100 professionals to strengthen misrepresentation policies. Their work identified and blocked 700,000 deceptive advertiser profiles, driving a 90 percent reduction in deepfake scam advertisements.

Content moderation efforts blocked 1.3 billion webpages from displaying advertisements. Sexual content topped the removal list, with dangerous material and malware following closely behind.
Despite these technological advances, Google maintains human oversight within review processes. The massive advertising ecosystem makes complete manual verification impossible, but the technology-human partnership appears increasingly effective against advertising fraud.

While automated systems risk occasional false positives affecting legitimate businesses, early results suggest Google's enhanced protection measures deliver substantial benefits to everyday internet users encountering fewer malicious advertisements.

Image: DIW-Aigen

Read next: Emotional Needs Drive AI Use, Leaving Marketing Tasks Far Behind
by Web Desk via Digital Information World

Emotional Needs Drive AI Use, Leaving Marketing Tasks Far Behind

According to a new report titled "How People Are Really Using Gen AI in 2025", users are not utilizing generative AI for creating social media content and ads as much as they use it for personal support. The findings of the report revealed that AI is not being widely used for technical and marketing purposes as many people are mostly using it for life organization, therapy and companionship, and finding purpose in their lives. Ad/marketing copy ranks at 64th as tasks being done using generative AI, followed by writing blog posts at 97th, social media copy at 98th, and social media systems at 99th.

There are several reasons why marketers seem to not adapt AI usage for marketing a lot, and most of the reason lies in marketers misjudging the potential of AI in technical areas. The research also found that users have gotten good at writing prompts and they also understand what AI can do and what it cannot do. Marketers should also understand why the top uses of AI are so popular among people and not the technical uses of it.

When AI users were asked about this, most of them said that they feel supported and emotionally connected with AI so they want AI marketing tools to feel the same as well. AI is also being used by people to organize their tasks and they say that marketing tools should also focus on organizing instead of creating content only. Marketing tools should also help people build skills like how AI acts as a learning tool for many users.

There is also a marketing-related use of generative AI ranked at the 6th spot which is “generate ideas”. This suggests that marketers can use AI for brainstorming instead of just using it for finished content. Marketers need to start using AI tools for personal as well as work uses.

Take a look at the charts below for more infights: 

Read next: State of Blogging 2025: From Word Count to AI Use, Visuals, Traffic, Income, and Reader Demands
by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World

Mark Zuckerberg Takes Stand for Second Day in Landmark US Antitrust Trial for Taking Over Instagram and Whatsapp

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg was seen taking the stand for the second time to testify in the landmark US Antitrust trial. This has to do with Meta’s ownership of Instagram and WhatsApp, which the FTC is referring to as monopoly practices.

The company was accused of trying to pull out all the stops to wipe out its competition because it felt they could become big threats to the tech giant in the future.

The hearing was held in the capital city of Washington, where Zuckerberg’s hopes of Trump intervening and protecting Big Tech with the antitrust law were dwindling. The end result of the case could see the Facebook owner undergo a merger and divest both platforms that are now considered major powerhouses in the tech era.

The case was filed first in December of 2020 when Trump was in power. At the time, all eyes used to be on whether the Republican chief would ask the FTC to step down.

This is not the first time that we’ve seen Meta come under pressure and Zuckerberg show up in court to share his side of the matter. He’s also been seen making several trips to the White House to try and convince the president that Meta did nothing wrong and was only looking out for the best interests of the company. Unfortunately, that proved to be not as fruitful as one would have hoped.

He was seen buying a mega $23 million mansion in Washington that was seen as an attempt to spend more time closer to the actual political power center. Today, Instagram stands as a single app with more than 2 billion active users.

Another email shared by Zuckerberg was revealed by the FTC that showed him displaying the app’s emergence as something very scary, and that’s why they might consider paying a lot more for something like this.

Yesterday was the first day of the testimony where Zuckerberg was seen downplaying all the exchanges as solely early discussions before he made actual plans to consider a buyout for Instagram. However, the FTC is far from convinced.

They argue that Meta’s $19 billion WhatsApp acquisition followed a similar pattern. Zuckerberg was fearful that the messaging platform might convert into a mega social network or fall prey to another arch rival in the industry.

The tech giant’s defense attorneys countered how a certain number of investments were needed to convert the acquisitions into something as major as what they appear today. Similarly, they highlighted how Meta’s apps were free for users and now face serious competition across the board.

The FTC attorney spoke more on the matter during his opening remarks. He says that Meta found competition to be too difficult and therefore the easier way out was purchasing rivals instead of competing side by side.

Now, a pivotal part of this battle in the courtroom will need to do with how the FTC will define the company’s market. As it is, the American government is urging certain apps like Instagram and Facebook to remain at the top of the game and provide the best way to link with loved ones and pals. This is one domain that does not entail the likes of YouTube and TikTok. However, Meta is not in favor of this.

The company says that only evidence in the trial can prove the reality, which is how Meta’s apps face serious competition from the likes of TikTok and YouTube, among others in the industry.

Image: DIW-Aigen

Read next: Apple Soars, vivo Climbs, Huawei Returns — Q1 2025 Smartphone Market Shifts Sharply
by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

Apple Soars, vivo Climbs, Huawei Returns — Q1 2025 Smartphone Market Shifts Sharply

According to Counterpoint Research's Market Pulse Early Look, the global smartphone market has grown by 3% in Q1 2025. Even though there was some decline seen in developed markets, China saw some growth mostly because of government subsidies. Emerging markets like Asia-Pacific, Latin America, and the Middle East also saw some recovery in their global smartphone market in Q1 2025. Ankit Malhotra, the senior research analyst at Counterpoint Research, said that mixed results were seen in 2025, with emerging markets showing better results because of better economic conditions and mature markets slowing down after recovering in 2024.

Global smartphone sales were strong in January because of subsidies in China and the release of the iPhone 16e and Samsung S25. But this momentum slowed down by the end of the quarter because of trade war risks and economic uncertainties. Overall, the market is predicted to decline YoY by 2025. Q1 of 2025 saw interesting competition among OEMs, with Apple being at the top spot mostly because of the launch of the iPhone 16e. Even though there were declining or flat sales in markets like Europe, the US, and China, there was double-digit growth of Apple in markets like the Middle East & Africa, Japan, Southeast Asia, and India.

The second top OEM was Samsung, with 18% of the market share. Even though Samsung sales slowed down at the beginning of the quarter, they picked up in March after the S25 series was launched. Xiaomi took the third spot and overall had strong momentum and good market share. It is also slowly growing in the premium segment, and its brand image has been boosted in China mostly due to its entry into electric vehicles.

The fastest growing brand among the top five smartphone brands was vivo, coming at number four, because of its growth in emerging markets and China and strong performance. It was followed by OPPO, which had good sales in Latin America, India, and Europe. Outside the top five, Huawei, HONOR, and Motorola are also growing fast and will probably have tough competition globally soon. Huawei took the number one spot as top selling brand in China in Q1 while HONOR and Motorola also saw growth in various markets. 2023 was tough but now the condition of the global smartphone market is improving because of better economic conditions, but it is still expected to decline by the end of 2025.

Brand	Q1 2023 Share	Q1 2024 Share	Q1 2025 Share	Year-over-Year Change (Q1 2025 vs Q1 2024)
Apple	20%	19%	19%	+4%
Samsung	21%	20%	18%	-5%
Xiaomi	12%	13%	14%	+5%
vivo	8%	8%	8%	+6%
OPPO	10%	8%	8%	-1%
Others	29%	32%	33%	+6%

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• State of Blogging 2025: From Word Count to AI Use, Visuals, Traffic, Income, and Reader Demands
by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World

State of Blogging 2025: From Word Count to AI Use, Visuals, Traffic, Income, and Reader Demands

Blogging is growing, as a personal hobby and as a business tool as well. So what are the trends and state of blogging in 2025? To answer this, we've compiled some key stats for blogging in 2025 and which changes should be made in blogging to get maximum readership, traffic, and income. According to 2025 statistics, there are over 600 million blogs globally which make up 31.6% of the total websites. Around 7.5 million blog posts are published every single day which makes up to 90 million blog posts being published annually.

In 2023, the average length for blog posts was 1,427 words but it decreased to 1,394 words in 2024. In 2014, the average length of blog posts was 800 words and there was a 72.5% increase seen in the length of blog posts in a decade. Master Blogging reports that the average length for blog posts is 1416 words and only 14% of the bloggers consistently write posts with more than 2,000 words. It was also reported that people spend three times more time on reading blogs than on emails. 32% of the bloggers write between 1,000 to 1,500 words, 31% write between 500 to 1,000 words, and 18% write between 1500 to 2000 words. 75% of the readers prefer reading blogs that are no more than 1000 words long.

Marketing/advertising blogs have 2500-3000 words, sales blogs have 2500-2700 words, gadgets blogs have 300-350 words and fashion blogs have 800-950 words on average. Data suggests that the ideal length for a blog post should be around 1500-2500 words, with longer blogs performing better than shorter ones. Visitors stay 40% more on long blogs than short ones and they get 56.1% more social shares and 77.2% more backlinks. The average time it took to write a blog in 2024 was 3 hours and 48 minutes. In 2014, it used to only take an average of 2 hours 24 minutes to write a blog, and the writing time increased by 119% between 2014 and 2022. 23% of bloggers reported posting several times a month while 22% posted weekly, 20% monthly, and 14% reported posting irregularly.

It is estimated that there are more than 600 million bloggers worldwide and over 6 million daily blog posts. There is no exact number of bloggers because there is a lot of unshared data, inactive sites, and non-traditional blogging platforms. How-to articles (74%) are the most popular blog type, followed by list posts (50%), guides/ebooks (46%), news/trends content (45%), and original research posts (43%). 50% of the blogs included 2-3 visuals to enhance their content, while 26% reported including only 1 visual, and 26% included more than 10 visuals. 25% of the bloggers also reported using video content in their blogs, which is a 15% increase from 2014.

As per Orbit Media report, 47% of the bloggers reported never collaborating with influencers while 8% said that they always collaborate with influencers. 46% reported collaborating with influencers 10%-50% of the time. 71% also reported updating their old posts while 53% used to do so in 2017. When asked if they use analytics, 29% said they use it always, 28% use them usually, 13% use them rarely or never and 5% reported having no access to analytics.

Orbit Media also shared some insights into the most effective blog posting strategies based on data from 2024. According to this data, posts that take more than 6 hours to create are more likely to have better results than posts that only take 1-2 hours to create. The ideal blog post length should be between 2000-3000 and posts with this length have a 4× more chance to succeed than posts under 500 words. It is recommended to blog multiple times monthly and there should be a consistent publishing schedule to post blogs in a month. AI use is also appreciated but it should be used strategically, and it can best be used for draft writing (25%), visual creation (24%), and editing suggestions and outlines (21%). Doing keyword research and prioritizing SEO gets 4.5× better outcomes than never doing keyword research and it is recommended to do it before writing, not after.

1 in 3 bloggers saw success when they used around 10 visuals in their posts and bloggers should mix charts, images, infographics, and even GIFs when appropriate. The strongest-performing content types on blogs are roundups (28%), infographics and original research (25%), audio (39%), and video (25%). Bloggers who collaborated with influencers in 50-90% of their content saw 3× better results than bloggers who didn't collaborate so it is best to do interviews, guest posts, and social media shout-outs on blogs. Influencer outreach (30%) generated more traffic than using only social media (19%). It is best to diversify traffic sources by using platforms like Facebook groups, Pinterest, and email newsletters in addition to traditional platforms.

According to blog readership statistics by Master Blogging, 83% of internet users read blogs which makes about 4.58 billion people globally. 29% of the people reported reading blogs 1-4 times a month, 18% read them daily and 17% reported never reading blogs. As per Zippia, most blog readers are between 21-35 years old (53.3%), followed by those under 21 (20.1%), and between 36-50 years old (19.4%). 26.5% of blog readers reported getting blog content from search engines, 24.2% get it from Facebook and 20.9% go directly to the publisher’s website. When people were asked why they read blogs, they answered with learning (62.2%), entertainment (51.1%), keeping up with trends (42%), and work or school (10.7%).

The most popular blog in January 2025 was skysports.com (47.7 million monthly visits), followed by people.com (37.1 million monthly visits) and sports.yahoo.com (27.7 million monthly visits). According to the stats, skysports.com will see 72.5 million monthly visitors by 2026 while mashable.com is the fastest-growing blog, and is expected to see a 456% rise in its monthly visitors by 2026. Tech is the top popular blogging category, with 63,843 mentions in 2025, followed by music and sports with 61,535 and 57,032 mentions respectively. There has been a 12% growth in blogs since 2015 and they are expected to grow by 40% by 2028.

If we talk about business blogging statistics, 80% of Fortune 500 companies have a dedicated blog, while 36% of marketers use blogs for brand promotion. 23% of B2B companies are using blogs for their content strategy as compared to 20% of B2C companies. There can be a 55% increase seen in web traffic, a 97% increase in inbound links, and 126% higher lead growth through blogging. The average conversion rate for blogs is 5% with 35% of the businesses also reporting rates between 2-5%. 73% of B2B marketers reported using case studies in their blogs, with 36% of readers saying that they find blogs more credible when case studies are included in them. 61% of US consumers reported that they have made a purchase based on a recommendation from a blog, while 70% said that they prefer learning about a company through blogs rather than ads. It was also found that companies that prioritize blogs are 13 times more likely to see a positive ROI than companies that don't.

Gary Vaynerchuk is the blogger with the most followers (19.23 million) while Tony Robbins has second place (19.2 followers). The average blogger's salary in the US is around $103,446 per year with California being the highest-paying state ($123, 543 annually). In the first two years, bloggers can earn $100,000 annually, while the first year earnings range from $500 to $2000 per month, depending on efforts and industry.

The biggest market share for any blogging platform goes to Tumblr (72.27%) followed by Medium (22.41%), and Google Blogger (5.25%). 20.5% of blogging platform customers are represented by marketing, 16.3% by social media, and 15.4% by digital marketing. 53% of the bloggers said that the biggest challenge they faced in 2024 was struggling to attract visitors from search engines while 52% faced difficulties in engaging readers with their content and not getting traffic at all. 49% of the bloggers said that it is a challenge for them to create and promote content while 48% are unable to attract visitors from social media. 80% of the bloggers have used AI for blogs in 2024, compared to 65% who used AI tools in 2023.

Read next: Survey: 32% of Consumers Want Human Responses Within an Hour from Brands on Social Media
by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World