Google Gets DOJ Approval for ITA Acquisition

Posted 04/08/2011 at 2:34pm | by Ryan Whitwam

4

Comments

Print

Google has received federal approval for its purchase of travel software company ITA. Google has faced intense scrutiny over the sale from the government as well as from the competition, like Microsoft Bing and Expedia. But it's not a free-for-all, Google will have to adhere to some fairly strict guidelines.

The settlement with the DOJ would require El Goog to use ITA's technology to develop travel software, and continue to fund development in the travel software industry. ITA's existing airfare search engine would need to remain available to Google's competition for a reasonable fee as well. To really drive the point home, the DOJ threatened an antitrust lawsuit should Google pass on the settlement.

Google's goal is to integrate flight information into search results. Users would be able to search for flights, prices, and other conditions to get a list of available tickets. It's yet another effort to keep users on Google sites, instead of just linking off to other services. Do you think Google's purchase of ITA will harm competition?