Regulatory Issues Nix Google, Yahoo Deal

Outsourcing paid search to Google sounded like a panacea to some who have followed Yahoo's travails, but antitrust concerns probably ended that discussion.

If you ever had what seemed like a terrific world-beating idea, something so cool that it had to work, and then woke up the next morning realizing the incredibly painful bad points to the idea, you understand the revelation that took place at Google. Feel free to think of it as a blast of cold water right in the face.

The sobering prospect of dealing with the Federal Trade Commission over antitrust issues again likely gave Google pause. Though CEO Eric Schmidt had offered whatever help he could to Yahoo as it fights Microsoft's takeover bid, in reality they couldn't help as much as Google would like.

Taking over Yahoo's paid search business and adding it to Google's already-dominant position could have profited Yahoo well. The

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