After announcing last week Google’s acquisition of Israel-based Waze, a “social mapping” service, word is now coming out that FTC regulators have decided to step in and conduct a review. Apparently some in the FTC believe Waze’s claim that they were a competitive threat to Google’s mapping services and thus the acquisition would run afoul of current law. Meanwhile, Google indicates the deal, which closed June 11th, did not require Federal review and approval because Waze’s revenues in the U.S. were less than $70 million.
While the review is underway, Google will likely have to delay efforts to integrate the service with their own mapping tools. If the FTC rules the acquisition should not have occurred, Google would be forced to divest themselves of the Waze unit even at a loss. Some potential buyers could include Apple, Facebook and Microsoft, all of whom have expressed an interest in the past.
Both Google and the FTC have declined to comment.
source: New York Post
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