FTC clears Google/AdMob deal, cites Apple’s iAd

The Federal Trade Commission announced today that it has closed its investigation into Google’s proposed acquisition of mobile advertising company AdMob. According to announcement, the Commission found the deal “unlikely to harm competition in the emerging market for mobile advertising networks,” and that “although the combination of the two leading mobile advertising networks raised serious antitrust issues, the agency’s concerns ultimately were overshadowed by recent developments in the market.” Most notable among these recent developments was Apple’s announcement of its iAd service, through which, the statement notes, “Apple can leverage its close relationships with application developers and users, its access to a large amount of proprietary user data, and its ownership of iPhone software development tools and control over the iPhone developers’ license agreement.” Google signed an agreement to purchase AdMob last November in a deal worth $750 million; Apple CEO Steve Jobs said earlier this year that Google “snatched” the company away from Apple because Google didn’t want Apple to have them.