Written By Sepideh Saremi | March 11, 2008 | Share This |

EU Google DoubleClick deal

The European Union today approved Google’s $3.1 billion acquisition of display ad tracker DoubleClick. From the EU:

The European Commission has cleared under the EU Merger Regulation the proposed acquisition of the online advertising technology company DoubleClick by Google, both of the US. The Commission’s in-depth investigation, opened in November 2007 (see IP/07/1688), concluded that the transaction would be unlikely to have harmful effects on consumers, either in ad serving or in intermediation in online advertising markets. The Commission has therefore concluded that the transaction would not significantly impede effective competition within the European Economic Area (EEA) or a significant part of it.

The European Commission determined that Google and DoubleClick aren’t rivals and wouldn’t have a negative impact on competition. Of course, Yahoo and Microsoft, ironically two companies that may now merge and would have to face the same commission if they do, vehemently opposed the Google-DoubleClick deal because it gives Google the leverage it needs to take over the display ad world online, as it has with search ads. Google has made no secret of its ambitions in display ad space, either: Dow Jones reports the company wants to secure a “very significant” place in online display advertising by next year, at latest.

Topics: Advertising: Online, Google, International, Investment, M&A |