Spring 2023, June, Volume 2

This edition of the Chronicle deals with the antitrust responses to one of the most ubiquitous, and complex phenomena in online commerce: online ads.

Today, it is almost quaint to consider that online advertising was strictly banned at the dawn of the Internet, as indeed was any “use for commercial activities by for-profit institutions.” From the lifting of this ban in 1991 to today, spending on online advertising has grown to far surpass that spent on traditional outlets such as print, TV, and other broadcast and physical media. Online advertising is multifaceted, and covers many types of online media, including email, search engines, social media, video advertising on online streaming platforms, traditional web banner advertising, and mobile advertising.