The Wall Street Journal Reports on FairSearch.org's Opposition to Google-ITA Transaction

Last night, The Wall Street Journal reported on the launch of the FairSearch.org coalition, which is urging the U.S. Justice Department to challenge Google’s proposed acquisition of ITA. Reporter Tom Catan’s reporting highlighted many of the concerns the industry is expressing about the Google-ITA deal:

• “Rivals say that Google’s promises are hollow. They say that no other company can replace ITA’s service and that Google hasn’t committed to renewing their contracts or passing along any upgrades. They also fear that Google could analyze their use of ITA’s data to gain an insight into their own proprietary systems for competitive reasons.”
• “The online travel companies question why, if it doesn’t intend to keep ITA’s data to itself, Google decided to buy the company instead of simply becoming another client.”
• “Airlines have generally remained cagey about the deal. But some have signaled their concern privately, saying they haven’t received assurances they have sought from Google.”

The article also notes that the Justice Department is conducting an extended antitrust review of the deal.