14 DAY TRIAL // The content of the Yahoo!-Google agreement was finally made public, just as many were dying to know what one of the most intriguing partnerships in the history of Internet might be about. The U.S. Security and Exchange Commission published on its official website the text that was made available by the two companies.
Although the subject itself seems interesting, the text is full with either redundant definitions or intricate legal provisions. "Yahoo! must display in each instance, the entire Results Set requested by Yahoo! and delivered by Google that corresponds to the Query on the applicable Property in the manner contemplated by this Agreement, without editing, filtering [...], reordering, adding content to, truncating or modifying the content [...] of the Advertising Results." reads a fragment of the document.
On June 12, Yahoo! and Google signed an agreement that made them partners in the advertising display business. According to it, Yahoo! would display Google ads on pages that show results to the searches performed with the Yahoo! search engine.
At the moment, the agreement between the two companies is still under the evaluation of several U.S. attorneys general, an action prompted by the fact that many still regard the deal as a threat to fair competition. Microsoft was the one to voice the firmest criticisms on this matter, the Redmond-based company repeatedly warning the general public about the implications such an important partnership might entail.
"Microsoft believes the Google/Yahoo! deal harms competition in several critical ways. Advertisers and online content providers would be harmed through price coordination that will establish higher prices and limit choice. Consumers would be put at risk as Google expands its ability to collect the personal information of users passing through its search gateway. On an even more fundamental level, Google's monopoly power would increase its ability to shape what people get to see and experience online." said Brad Smith, Senior Vice President and General Counsel of Microsoft Corporation.