Google under fire as DoJ hires top-notch litigator for possible antitrust challenge

Jordan Golson — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 10:12:40 -0400

The Department of Justice has hired a former DoJ official and Walt Disney vice chairman Sanford Litvack, in preparation for possible antitrust action against Google, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Litvack, the DoJ's antitrust chief under Jimmy Carter, was asked to examine evidence gathered thus far and head up the government's case if needed, lawyers close to the situation told the WSJ.

What is more murky is the scope of the investigation -- the government has been deposing witnesses and issuing subpoenas while investigating the Google-Yahoo search ad deal made in the aftermath of Microsoft's failed buyout of Yahoo, but the investigation could be more wide-ranging, looking at Google's overall stranglehold on the online advertising business, especially in the wake of Google's (government approved) purchase of DoubleClick.

A number of companies, including previous antitrust target Microsoft, have objected to the Google-Yahoo partnership.

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