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U.S. deepens review of Yahoo, Microsoft deal

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CIOL Bureau
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WASHINGTON, USA: U.S. antitrust regulators have requested more documents in their probe of Microsoft Corp's deal to provide search engine technology to rival Yahoo Inc, the two companies said on Friday.

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The deal, struck in late July as a way to challenge search giant Google, faces regulatory review in the United States.

Both Microsoft and Yahoo confirmed that the Justice Department's antitrust division had made a second request for documents, which indicates a decision to conduct a deeper review that could take months.

"We said when the deal was announced that we expected a review was a matter of time," said Microsoft spokesman Jack Evans.

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"We're obviously cooperating fully," said Yahoo spokesman Adam Grossberg.

The companies said they were hopeful that the deal would close in early 2010.

Google is the No. 1 search engine, with Yahoo in second place and Microsoft in third.

At the end of July, Microsoft and Yahoo signed a 10-year deal under which search on Yahoo's websites will be generated by Microsoft's new Bing search engine.

Microsoft will license Yahoo's search technology, allowing Microsoft to integrate certain aspects of it into Bing. Microsoft's advertising search product, AdCenter, will also replace Yahoo's equivalent product, Panama.

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