Google's $3.1 billion purchase of DoubleClick has drawn the scrutiny of federal regulators, according to a New York Times report, but it will be the Federal Trade Commission and not the Justice Department that will ultimately determine if the deal runs afoul of U.S. antitrust laws.
Speaking on the condition of anonymity, an online advertising industry executive told the paper that the FTC had begun a preliminary inquiry. The Justice Department, which shares antitrust jurisdiction, will not review the deal.
The FTC did not comment on the inquiry, citing a policy of not commenting on ongoing investigations.
Google faces two hurdles in its quest to seek approval for the DoubleClick deal. While privacy advocates have raised concerns over one company having access to so much personal information, the FTC has said it is primarily concerned with how such a large deal would affect competition in the industry.
Last week, Google's DoubleClick acquisition also raised eyebrows overseas, with regulators saying that the search giant may be in violation of EU law by retaining users' data for too long.
