The company says that the entire case is just a “missed opportunity”

Jan 4, 2013 09:50 GMT  ·  By

The Federal Trade Commission announced a settlement deal with Google a few hours ago, and even if the search giant has promised to make minor adjustments to its services, there are some people out there who aren’t quite satisfied with this decision.

The FTC said that there’s not enough evidence that Google has adopted an unfair tactic to gain an advantage over its competitors, but the Mountain View-based search giant has agreed to change some of its business practices.

Microsoft, on the other hand, thinks that it’s all just “a missed opportunity” and says that “Google effectively prohibited its primary paying customers (advertisers) from using data about their own advertising campaigns on any ad platform other than Google’s.”

“The FTC took steps today to address some of Google’s improper business practices. We find it troubling that the agency did not adhere to its own standard procedures that call for the agency to obtain industry input on proposed relief and secure it through an enforceable consent decree,” Dave Heiner, vice president & deputy general counsel, Microsoft, said in a statement.

“The FTC’s overall resolution of this matter is weak and—frankly—unusual. We are concerned that the FTC may not have obtained adequate relief even on the few subjects that Google has agreed to address.”

Microsoft has once again emphasized that Google blocks the software giant from creating a “high-quality” YouTube app for the Windows Phone, while also serving ads to those using the Shopping service. In addition, “Google routinely and systematically heavily promotes its own services in search results.”

The Redmond-based technology titan, on the other hand, says that there’s still a hope to see Google punished for its business practices, as some other antitrust agencies in the United States and overseas are still investigating the search company.

“We remain hopeful that these agencies will stick to their established procedures, ensure transparency, and obtain the additional relief needed to address the serious competition law concerns that remain,” Heiner concluded.