The two-year long antitrust inquiry into Google's search business may come to an end as the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is likely to allow the Internet giant to make voluntary changes to its search business. Citing unnamed sources with knowledge of the case, Politico reported that Google is preparing an official announcement about the proposed changes such as a limited use of restaurant and travel reviews from other websites and a new system which lets search ad campaigns be easily ported to rival search services.
Websites such as Yelp and others had alleged that the search engine is using their content without permission. According to the report, Google would avoid a consent decree by the commission if it voluntarily addresses the allegations about the use of its search and search advertising businesses.
FTC does have the power to take up cases against companies that violate their own stated policies. However, it is reported that the commission may transfer the case to the European Commission, which has mounted an investigation of its own.
According another Politico report, FTC and Google are also working out a settlement deal for a case involving the patents owned by Google. The case is related to patents that came along with its purchase of Motorola Mobility to block competitors that are infringing those patents from getting their products to the market. "In the patent case, Google is expected to agree to license its patents that are part of industry standards. These patents have been litigated around the world with companies such as Microsoft and Apple. Not making this sort of broad agreement had made Google an outlier in the industry," the report said.
