Google is still talking with DOJ about Yahoo deal

Google hasn't changed its position around a Yahoo deal since early October, according to a report today. The search engine giant is still talking with the DOJ about antitrust concerns.

Google CEO Eric Schmidt reportedly said this week that his company is still talking with the US Department of Justice about a proposed pact with Yahoo which is widely seen as an effort to help Yahoo ward off buyout by Microsoft.

Under questioning by Reuters yesterday, Schmidt reportedly reiterated this stance, saying that the company has agreed to keep talking with the DOJ about the proposed agreement with Yahoo.

Under the proposal, unveiled in June, Google would handle sales of some of the advertising space on Yahoo's search pages.

Some advertisers, though, have voiced concerns that the partnership would spur a rise in ad rates if it goes through, since Google and Yahoo are already the number one and two players, respectively, in the US Web search market.

In August, Schmidt had said that Google would move ahead with the Yahoo partnership in October, regardless of whether DOJ antitrust reviewers approved. During that month, Google further grew its search market dominance, increasing its market share to 63% while Yahoo's declined to 19.6% and Microsoft's to 8.3%, according to figures from comScore.

On October 3, Google had a change of heart, announcing that it would not start offloading advertising for Yahoo right away in order to give DOJ antitrust reviewers time to go over the proposal.