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Yet groups such as Consumer Watchdog have called on government regulators to block the sale. The Fairsearch.org consortium of competitors to Google—which includes Microsoft—issued a statement that “encourages government officials to look closely” at how Google uses the acquisition.
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Internet services giant Google has announced plans to acquire travel brand Frommer for an undisclosed amount in a deal that has already come under fire from Consumer Watchdog.
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Google’s latest attempt to add more content to its local business listings by buying travel brand Frommer has been challenged by the Consumer Watchdog.
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Longtime Google critic Consumer Watchdog, an organization based in Santa Monica, said it would call on federal antitrust authorities to block the purchase. “There is a fundamental conflict between being a search provider and a content provider,” Consumer Watchdog spokesman John Simpson said in an emailed statement.
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“There is a fundamental conflict between being a search provider and a content provider,” said John M. Simpson, Consumer Watchdog’s Privacy Project Director.
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Google has snapped up travel guidebook brand Frommer’s, a deal which has been attacked by a consumer group over potential antitrust implications.
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With its recent purchase of Zagat and today’s announcement that it is acquiring travel guide company Frommer’s, there can be little doubt that Google is getting deeper into the content business. This move makes a lot of sense for Google, which is trying to add more content to its local reviews business and Knowledge Graph, but it could also put the company under additional scrutiny from antitrust investigators in the U.S. and elsewhere. Already, the consumer advocacy organization Consumer Watchdog is calling upon government regulators to block the acquisition.
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Critics of the ITA deal said Monday that the Frommer’s purchase raises similar issues. “This is further down the road of having content that will keep you on the site longer,” said John Simpson, executive director of Consumer Watchdog, who said regulators should block the deal. “There are serious potential antitrust questions around how the search function is used with a site that now is offering its own unique content.”
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The FTC fines Google a record $22.5 million for violating the privacy of people who used Apple’s Safari Web browser even after pledging it would not.
In levying a record $22.5-million fine against Google Inc., the Federal Trade Commission said it wanted to send a clear message to the Internet giant that it won’t tolerate similar breaches in the future.
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Google Inc. (GOOG) agreed to pay $22.5 million, the largest fine ever levied by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, to settle allegations that it breached Apple Inc. (AAPL)’s Safari Internet browser.
