The Federal Trade Commission has asked Google to provide more information about its pending acquisition of AdMob before giving that deal final approval. 

Google disclosed the "second request" in a blog post Wednesday afternoon, saying "while this means we won't be closing right away, we're confident that the FTC will conclude that the rapidly growing mobile advertising space will remain highly competitive after this deal closes. And we'll be working closely and cooperatively with them as they continue their review." 

When Google first disclosed plans in early November to acquire AdMob, a leading provider of mobile advertising services, for $750 million, it said that it expected the federal government to take a closer look at the deal. Google even prepared a special Web page for the media and regulators explaining why it believed the deal did not pose any competitive threats, which is becoming standard practice at Google as it deals with increasing scrutiny from the government. 

However, the second request could push back Google's initial expectation that the deal could close "in the next several months," although that's a statement with an awful lot of wiggle room. Google is also facing a delay with its proposed acquisition of On2 Technologies, which seems to be having trouble gaining the necessary number of shareholder votes in favor of the deal. 

By Tom Krazit

Source: CNET News, Dec 23, 2009

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