Inside Google

WASHINGTON, DC — Consumer Watchdog and the Center for Digital Democracy today called on the Federal Trade Commission to investigate Google’s announced plan to buy Invite Media, a display advertising company, for around $70 million, saying the deal raises substantial competitive and privacy concerns.

“The ink is hardly dry on Google’s questionable AdMob acquisition,” said John M. Simpson, consumer advocate for the nonprofit, nonpartisan group, “and the Internet giant is forging ahead with an insatiable appetite for more. When is enough, enough?”

Simpson and the Center for Digital Democracy’s Jeff Chester said that combining Invite Media’s database with the information Google gathered though the $750 million AdMob deal and the earlier DoubleClick acquisition raised substantial privacy concerns. The deals give Google unprecedented access to consumers’ personal data. The Invite purchase appears to be anticompetitive, they said.

“The FTC blinked in the face of Google’s Washington clout on the AdMob deal,” said Simpson. “It’s time for the Commissioners to stand firm and give Google the scrutiny it deserves.”

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Consumer Watchdog, formerly the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights is a nonprofit, nonpartisan consumer advocacy organization with offices in Washington, DC and Santa Monica, Ca.  Consumer Watchdog’s website is www.consumerwatchdog.org. Visit our new Google Privacy and Accountability Project website: http://InsideGoogle.com

The Center for Digital Democracy (CDD) is dedicated to ensuring that the public interest is a fundamental part of the new digital communications landscape. URL: http://www.democraticmedia.org