After US nod, Google clicks on Europe

WITH US antitrust clearance for its DoubleClick purchase, Google's focus now turns to European regulators, who are expected to be more critical of the top search engine linking up with a market leader in online advertising.

The proposed US$3.1-billion transaction, which is strongly opposed by privacy advocates, cannot be completed without approval from the European Commission, whose review deadline is April 2.

The Federal Trade Commission said that the deal would not significantly lessen competition in the online advertising market, rebuffing complaints from Microsoft Corp and AT&T Inc that it would give Google a dominant position.

"The FTC's strong support sends a clear message - this acquisition poses no risk to competition and will benefit consumers," Eric Schmidt, Google Inc's chief executive, said. "We hope that the European Commission will soon reach the same conclusion."

The European Commission declined to comment on the FTC's decision, spokesman Jonathan Todd said.

The FTC's approval of the deal without conditions could push European regulators to take a tougher line, says Rebecca Arbogast, an analyst at Stifel Nicolaus.

For example, they could restrict the ability of the two companies to share the market data they collect or require the combined company to sell off certain assets, analysts have said.

But Arbogast believes Europe will approve the deal, noting that Google could benefit from Microsoft's antitrust problems in the EU.