The news: A California judge has ruled that Google must face some claims in a class-action lawsuit alleging the company knowingly collected minors’ data to deliver targeted advertisements, violating the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). The judge called Google’s COPPA violation—collecting minors’ data without parental consent—"highly offensive."

Zooming out: The California ruling adds to the pile of legal woes and regulatory changes putting pressure on Google’s business, alongside fellow ad duopoly member Meta, setting 2025 up to be a significant year for both companies.

• In Europe, Google and Meta have been on the receiving end of steep fines. In late 2024, European regulators ruled that Google must pay two fines totalling €4.89 billion ($5.29 billion) for abusing its market power in two different sectors.
• While hefty, fines are just one part of the picture. The EU and UK have both passed sweeping laws like the Digital Markets Act that redefine the rules around data collection and come with their own: Companies in violation of the DMA can lose up to 10% of their global annual revenues.
• Those laws also limit how platforms can gather and use data from minors, causing major signal loss for in-demand advertising data.

Our take: California’s ruling and other state-level challenges are a sign that Google and Meta’s troubles may be beyond the federal government’s reach.

Tech CEOs have sought to align themselves with the incoming US administration in an effort to reverse their fortunes at home and abroad. In a recent appearance on “The Joe Rogan Experience,” Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said EU fines were akin to tariffs.

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