Microsoft Will Try to Block Google-Yahoo Japan Deal

A legal battle is brewing between Microsoft and Google for control of Japan's lucrative search market.

Microsoft will try to convince Japan's Fair Trade Commission that a search advertising agreement struck earlier this week between Google and Yahoo Japan will be harmful to competition, Microsoft said on Friday.

It had voiced concerns about the deal almost as soon as it was announced Tuesday, saying it gives Google too much control over Japan's search and search advertising markets. The deal means Google's search engine will be used to provide results for more than 90 percent of searches conducted in Japan.

"We plan to present evidence to the Japanese FTC explaining why we believe that this deal is substantially more harmful to competition than Google's deal with Yahoo in 2008 that the U.S. Department of Justice found to be illegal," Microsoft said Friday in a brief statement to reporters.

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