Move over Microsoft. Google may be about to take over as the latest tech company in the government's antitrust crosshairs. According to this report in the Wall St. Journal, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has hired prominent antitrust lawyer Sandy Litvack to help it review Yahoo's agreement to outsource its search advertising to Google. The move could be a signal that the DOJ is readying an antitrust suit to block the deal.
If so, things could happen fast. The Google/Yahoo deal, which would result in Google handling upwards of 80% of the online search advertising market, is set to go into effect in October, and Google CEO Eric Schmidt says he sees no reason to change that timetable. But just Monday, a group of major advertisers, including a group representing Procter & Gamble and General Motors, complained to the DOJ about the deal. And then, the DOJ went out and hired Litvack.
While it’s relatively rare for the DOJ to hire outside counsel, there is precedent, and it doesn't bode well for Google's chances. The DOJ brought in David Boies to help build the antitrust case against Microsoft in 1998, and we all know how that turned out. Plus outside counsel Stephen Axinn was brought in to help the DOJ challenge WorldCom's buyout of Sprint, a deal that was abandoned as a result. Perhaps Microsoft, via the DOJ, has finally hit on the right solution to stop Google in its tracks.
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