Marketing Pilgrim

UPDATE: Google CEO Eric Schmidt has now confirmed the acquisition. His statement reads, in part:

An immediate task we’ll undertake over the next few weeks is matching and aligning DoubleClick employees with our organizational plan for the business. This will involve determining the right staffing levels for all functions and will ensure that we have the right people assigned to the right responsibilities within Google. We plan to complete this process in the U.S. by early April.

Outside the U.S., the steps we will propose are subject to consultation with employee representatives where applicable, and of course any decisions will be made in accordance with local law. The exact timing of the process outside the U.S. will vary based on the needs and requirements of each region.

As with most mergers, there may be reductions in headcount. We expect these to take place in the U.S. and possibly in other regions as well. We know that DoubleClick is built on the strength of its people. For this reason we’ll strive to minimize the impact of this process on all of our clients and employees.

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As we reported last week, the EU has give the green light for Google to acquire ad network DoubleClick.

According to Reuters:

“The Commission’s in-depth market investigation found that Google and DoubleClick were not exerting major competitive constraints on each other’s activities and could, therefore, not be considered as competitors at the moment,” the Commission, the executive arm of the European Union, said in a statement.

Even though Microsoft and Yahoo were among the companies that lodged objections to the acquisition, you’ve got to think they can now leverage this approval for their own needs–should Microsoft end up acquiring Yahoo.

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