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Digital groups petition FCC to block Google purchase of AdMob

''Harmful to consumers, advertisers and developers''

Digital groups petition FCC to block Google purchase of AdMob
Google's pending acquisition of mobile advertising company AdMob will prove to be the internet giant's third largest purchase of all time at $750 million, should the deal be finalised.

But that's proving to be a slow moving issue, as Consumer Watchdog and the Center for Digital Democracy have added their voices to the increasingly long line of disapprovers. The two associations have sent a letter to the Federal Trade Commission requesting the purchase be blocked.

"The proposed deal would substantially lessen competition in the increasingly important mobile advertising market," the joint letter states.

"The acquisition as proposed is harmful to consumers, advertisers and application developers, among others. We call on the FTC to use the appropriate statutory and regulatory authority to oppose the merger."

It goes on to remind the FCC that it promised to "act quickly" regarding Google's increasingly dominant position on the internet, and also points out potential privacy concerns should the two companies join forces.

It's reasonably believed that the acquisition of AdMob is directly linked to Google's own smartphone entry, the Nexus One, so there's a lot riding on the deal. The FCC has yet to make its decision.

Yes. Spanner's his real name. And, yes, he's heard that joke before.