TechWag

: Image via CrunchBase

Techflash and Bloomberg are reporting that Christine Varney who has been nominated to be the next US Antitrust Chief is looking at Google, saying “Microsoft is so last century”. Troubling and interesting given how much time Microsoft has been locked up globally in antitrust litigation since the 1990’s.

Bloomberg reports that:

Christine A. Varney, nominated by President Barack Obama to be the U.S.’s next antitrust chief, has described Google Inc. as a monopolist that will dominate online computing services the way Microsoft Corp. ruled software. Source: Bloomberg

With some quick investigative work by Techflash that leads to this MP3 file (opens up a MP3 podcast on the Sherman Act, you might want to right click open in new window).

This raises some serious ideas, one that Yahoo and Microsoft are going to support when it comes to Google being hauled before the antitrust group in DC. With Google the acknowledged powerhouse in search and advertising, the impact they can have on web sites, people, the cost of ads, the sad state of newspapers both on and off line, and everything including the kitchen sink on this one will be thrown at Google if they are investigated. Most of us realize that this is going to be as long and as drawn out as Microsoft’s antitrust issues and litigation that are still ongoing in the EU, and they are still under watch in the USA.

Interesting, it will be very interesting to see what lobbyists are brought on board, and how hard it is going to be to confirm Varney as the next antitrust chief. This is going to be one wild nomination process, and one that spells out what kind of trouble Google could be looking at in the future, if she gets the job.

Tags: google, antitrust, Christine Varney, USA, US Antitrust Chief, Microsoft, EU, interesting