Google is expected to receive unconditional approval from European Union regulators next week for its $3.1 billion takeover of ad firm DoubleClick, people familiar with the situation said.
The approval has long been expected because the European Commission decided in January not to object formally to the transaction. The Commission, the EU’s top competition watchdog, has never rejected a deal without sending formal objections.
Privacy advocates have objected to the deal, saying it would give the two firms unprecedented access to information about consumers. The Commission has said privacy considerations are outside the scope of its authority over mergers.
The deal would combine Internet search engine giant Google’s dominance in pay-per-click Web advertising with DoubleClick’s market-leading position in flashier display ads.
Source: reuters.com
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U.S. regulators approved Google Inc.’s $3.1 billion purchase of DoubleClick, clearing the way for a formidable combination in the burgeoning online advertising sector.
The deal still needs the approval of the European Commission, which opened an extensive investigation into the merger in November. The EC has until April 2, 2008, to make a final decision on whether Google’s acquisition of DoubleClick would “significantly impede” effective competition within the European Economic Area or any substantial part of it.
The Federal Trade Commission appeared to accept many of Google‘s arguments that its online ad sales business doesn‘t compete with DoubleClick‘s ad-serving tools, saying its analysis “showed that the companies are not direct competitors in any relevant antitrust market.”
The deal, announced in April, will combine Google’s leading position in online text ads with DoubleClick’s ad-serving tools that help publishers place and track display ads.
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