Google Facing Possible Antitrust Probe, Sources Say

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission is considering whether the company’s dominance poses a threat to competition in the search-engine industry.

Is Google getting too big for its own good? Sources familiar with the matter say the FTC is weighing whether to launch an antitrust investigation into the company, which has all but cornered the market on internet search engines. The FTC’s decision will hinge on a pending announcement from the U.S. Justice Department relating to Google’s planned acquisition of ITA Software, a travel-search company. That deal has raised concerns that Google is reducing competition in the online travel business, and is not the first time the corporation has been hit with antitrust accusations. In 2008, Google scrapped plans to ally with Yahoo! Inc. after the Justice Department threatened to sue.