MOUNTAIN VIEW (dpa-AFX) - The Federal Trade Commission's settlement with Google Inc. (GOOG) failed to end its most anticompetitive practice, Consumer Watchdog said Thursday and the public interest group called on the Department of Justice and state attorneys general to press forward to end the Internet giant's monopolistic behavior in search results.
The new Assistant Attorney General for the Department of Justice Antitrust Division, William Baer, should make Google's abuse of search a top priority, Consumer Watchdog said.
The FTC's settlement does require a consent agreement regarding so-called Standards Essential Patents held by Google's Motorola subsidiary. Google is now required to license these patents to any company on 'fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory' terms - known as FRAND terms.
Consumer Watchdog expressed concern that FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz, who is expected to step down from the commission soon, may have rushed to finish the investigation so it could be concluded under his chairmanship.
Earlier today, the Federal Trade Commission said that Google agreed to change some of its business practices to resolve Federal Trade Commission concerns that those practices could stifle competition in the markets for popular devices such as smart phones, tablets and gaming consoles, as well as the market for online search advertising.
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