NEWS RELEASE

Committee on Energy and Commerce
Rep. John D. Dingell, Chairman

Rush and Whitfield Continue Online Advertising Probe, Plan for Summer Hearing

Google-Yahoo Advertising Agreement Heightens Concerns Regarding Consolidation, Competition and Consumer Privacy

Washington, D.C. – Rep. Bobby L. Rush (D-IL), Chairman of the Committee on Energy and Commerce’s Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection, and Rep. Ed Whitfield (R-KY), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee, today issued the following statements regarding the recent online advertising partnership agreement between Google and Yahoo and the Subcommittee’s plan to hold a hearing examining online advertising issues this summer.

“Earlier this year Ranking Member Whitfield and I announced our intention to hold a hearing on the privacy and competition issues raised by a number of developments in online advertising. Yesterday’s announcement of an online advertising partnership agreement between Google and Yahoo is yet another example of the rapid changes in this market, and further underscores the need for close scrutiny of the impact on consumers. We are preparing to hold a hearing on this important issue this summer,” said Rep. Rush.

Voicing similar concerns, Rep. Whitfield said, “Yesterday’s announcement of an on-line advertising partnership between Google and Yahoo further highlights the need to examine what risks agreements such as these pose to consumer privacy. There remain a number of questions surrounding what personal information these types of companies collect from consumers’ use of the internet and how those data sets may be combined for future use. I look forward to working with Chairman Rush in the months to come, as well as with industry and consumer groups, to determine how best to protect consumer privacy in an ever-expanding, ever-changing on-line world without hindering consumer access to personalized internet content.”

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