Microsoft encourages antitrust scrutiny of Google

Microsoft Corp. on Friday made its case publicly for increased antitrust scrutiny of rival Google Inc., while deflecting criticism that one of its European properties helped spur a local investigation of the Internet search giant.

“Microsoft would obviously be among the first to say that leading firms should not be punished for their success,” the company said in a posting on a corporate Web site. However, it added, “We are concerned about Google business practices that tend to lock in publishers and advertisers and make it harder for Microsoft to gain search volume.”

Google announced earlier this week that the European Commission is looking into complaints that it’s hindering competition. One of the companies complaining to the regulator is Ciao GmbH, a unit of Greenfield Online Inc., which Microsoft acquired in 2008.

The European Commission inquiry is only the latest dose of antitrust scrutiny for Google, which dominates Internet search markets in the U.S. and in many European countries.

Read more: physorg.com