Blog Post
Since April when Bloomberg News reported that the Federal Trade Commission was contemplating a full-blown antitrust investigation of Google, people who follow the Internet giant have been waiting for the other shoe to drop. It did on Thursday with the report in the Wall Street Journal that the five-member Commission is about to serve Google with civil subpoenas — known as Civil Investigative Demands — about its business practices.
Press Release
SANTA MONICA, CA – Consumer Watchdog today invited Google to participate in a conference, “Google, The Internet And The Future,” that the nonpartisan, nonprofit public interest group plans to host in Washington this fall as part of its Inside Google project. The invitation came in a letter to CEO Eric Schmidt and co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin. It was prompted by Google’s promotional campaign this week in Washington highlighting its privacy tools and a House Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts and Competition hearing Thursday on competition in digital markets.
News Clipping
On Thursday, Consumer Watchdog complained about the ad rejection in an open letter published on its site, and a Google representative confirmed Friday that Google had overturned the original decision but did not admit making any error. “As the trademark owner, upon becoming aware of their letter, we decided–regardless of whether these particular ads violate our policies or not–to authorize them to run,” a Google representative said.
Press Release
Consumer Watchdog and the Center for Digital Democracy today called on the Federal Trade Commission to investigate Google’s announced plan to buy Invite Media, a display advertising company, for around $70 million, saying the deal raises substantial competitive and privacy concerns.
News Clipping
John Simpson of Consumer Watchdog said the deal will undermine competition, and could result in higher prices for advertisers and consumers.
News Clipping
“How this possibly can be construed as promoting competition is incomprehensible,” said John Simpson of Consumer Watchdog, a strident Google critic. “What it demonstrates is Google’s clout in Washington.”
News Clipping
“We’re very disappointed, we think it’s still pretty clear that these two combined are an unstoppable juggernaut,” said John Simpson, Consumer Watchdog spokesman on Friday. “There’s also an arguable case that Apple’s activities need to be investigated right now with what they’re planning to do with Quattro and perhaps shutting people out of the iPhone platform.”
News Clipping
“I’m really incredulous,” said John Simpson of Consumer Watchdog. “What they are saying is the No. 1 and the No. 2 can combine, and it’s not a problem because there is a No. 3 over there that is now owned by Apple. I find that incomprehensible.”
Press Release
The Federal Trade Commission’s decision allowing the $750 million deal for Google to buy mobile advertising company AdMob is anticompetitive and bad for consumers, Consumer Watchdog said today.
News Clipping
Consumer Watchdog and Center for Digital Democracy were concerned more about the impact the deal would have on consumers’ ability to protect their privacy than the possible antitrust implications of the acquisition.
