Google's (NASDAQ: GOOG) deal to buy DoubleClick seemed certain to get a government review. Google is too dominant in text advertising and DoubeClick too big in display ad serving and targeting. Of course, competitors like Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) said it would put too much online advertising power in one set of hands.
Now the eyes of the Federal Trade Commission have turned on Microsoft and Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO). Their respective deals to buy aQuantive (NASDAQ: AQNT) and Right Media are going to get the antitrust once over, at the very least.
Right now, the FTC's review of the Google deal is more formal [subscription required] than the other two, but that could change. More than one industry association has asked that the government to take a close look at all three transactions.
Although the odds are that none of the M&A activity that is designed to bring advertising targeting under the umbrellas of big web portals will be stopped, perhaps the FTC work will be more than a formality. When these three transactions are added to AOL's ownership of Advertising.com, the concentration of private data about individual's web habits will be in very few corporate hands.
Perhaps there should be a divide between those that have the information and those who have the advertising inventory. But, that would be in a too perfect world.
Douglas A. McIntyre is a partner at 24/7 Wall St.
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