Apple Said to Be Subpoenaed by U.S. Regulators on Google’s Mobile Search (Google Antitrust Probe) [View all]
Source: Bloomberg
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission subpoenaed Apple Inc. (AAPL) as part of its antitrust probe of Google Inc. (GOOG), seeking information on how the computer maker uses the search engine on the iPhone and iPad, two people familiar with the matter said.
The agency’s request for documents includes the agreements that made Google the preferred search engine on Apple’s mobile devices, said the people, who weren’t authorized to speak publicly and declined to be identified. Google rivals such as Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) have criticized these agreements as anticompetitive.
The subpoena indicates the FTC is intensifying its scrutiny of Google’s business practices. Details of the Apple-Google relationship may show whether Google is abusing its dominance of Internet search to boost revenue in the mobile phone advertising market, said Allen Grunes, an antitrust lawyer at Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck LLP in Washington.
“As mobile search gets more widespread, the default setting becomes more significant,” said Grunes, who doesn’t represent Google or its rivals. The FTC has sent subpoenas to other handset makers and wireless carriers, said one of the people, who declined to name the companies.
Read more: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-03-13/apple-said-to-be-subpoenaed-by-u-dot-s-dot-regulators-on-google-s-mobile-search
Is 'Don't be evil' Google starting to receive its comeuppance?
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