US senator pledges antitrust review of Google-Yahoo deal
The head of the US Senate's antitrust panel has pledged a "careful review" of the joint venture on online search advertising announced by Yahoo and Google.
Senator Heb Kohl made the announcement late Thursday after Yahoo and Google announced a deal to put the Internet search king's expertise to work pumping money from advertising posted next to Yahoo Internet search results.
"This collaboration between two technology giants and direct competitors for Internet advertising and search services raises important competition concerns," Kohl said.
"The consequences for advertisers and consumers could be far-reaching and warrant careful review, and we plan to investigate the competitive and privacy implications of this deal further in the Antitrust Subcommittee."
The alliance focuses on text ads posted alongside Yahoo online search results but has the potential to expand to include display advertising.
The deal is limited to Yahoo web properties in the United States and Canada, but Google said there is potential to extend it to other parts of the world.
In a move evidently crafted to address anticipated antitrust concerns, the agreement frees Yahoo to also display paid search results from other third parties and its own Panama ad platform.
© 2008 AFP
"This collaboration between two technology giants and direct competitors for Internet advertising and search services raises important competition concerns," Kohl said.
"The consequences for advertisers and consumers could be far-reaching and warrant careful review, and we plan to investigate the competitive and privacy implications of this deal further in the Antitrust Subcommittee."
The alliance focuses on text ads posted alongside Yahoo online search results but has the potential to expand to include display advertising.
The deal is limited to Yahoo web properties in the United States and Canada, but Google said there is potential to extend it to other parts of the world.
In a move evidently crafted to address anticipated antitrust concerns, the agreement frees Yahoo to also display paid search results from other third parties and its own Panama ad platform.
© 2008 AFP
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