Feb. 8 (Bloomberg) -- Google Inc. hasn't received formal objections from European Union regulators about its proposed $3.1 billion purchase of DoubleClick Inc., three people familiar with the case said, indicating the EU is close to approving the deal.

European regulators in Brussels may only block a merger if they send a list of concerns, known as a statement of objections. That document is typically sent at least eight weeks before the deadline for approval. No such document has been sent in the Google case ahead of the April 2 deadline, said the people, who declined to be identified because the investigation is private.

``If they're not objecting to anything, then of course the deal is going to go through,'' said Dennis Oswell, a competition lawyer at Oswell & Vahida in Brussels. ``If you think you have something to fight over, you've got to get that out.''

The European Commission's antitrust probe is one of the last hurdles facing the proposed purchase after the U.S. Federal Trade Commission approved the deal in December. Mountain View, California-based Google, owner of the most-popular Internet search engine, would use the DoubleClick acquisition to bolster sales of Internet ads that include pictures and videos.

The EU generally sends companies a statement of objections early to give them a chance to respond in writing and at a hearing before a final decision to block a deal is made.

``This is still an ongoing investigation, but we don't believe the transaction raises any competition concerns,'' Ben Novick, a Google spokesman in London, said yesterday. ``We hope that the EC will come to the same conclusion as the FTC and will clear the deal without any conditions.''

Share Performance

Jonathan Todd, a commission spokesman, declined to comment.

Google rose $11.74 to $516.69, or 2.3 percent, by 4 p.m. New York time in Nasdaq Stock Market trading. The stock has fallen 25 percent this year. Microsoft Corp., which on Feb. 1 announced a $44.6 billion bid for Yahoo! Inc., has dropped 20 percent in that time.

Google announced the DoubleClick transaction in April. The commission, the EU's antitrust authority in Brussels, started an in-depth investigation into the purchase on Nov. 13, saying it may hurt competition for online advertising dollars.

The deal has drawn criticism from Microsoft, Yahoo and AT&T Inc., which say it would hurt competition in the $28.8 billion global online advertising market. Privacy groups in the U.S. and Europe also oppose the deal.

Online Advertising

Google generates revenue from selling text-based ads that appear next to search results. DoubleClick's products help advertisers measure how effective their ads are and allow Web publishers to track and manage online advertising. The ads are typically so-called display ads that include graphics or animation.

DoubleClick competes with Internet advertising company AQuantive Inc., which was acquired by Microsoft, the world's largest software maker, for $6 billion in August.

Yahoo agreed in September to buy the U.S.'s fifth-largest online advertiser, BlueLithium Inc., having bought Right Media Inc., a New York-based auction site for online advertising, in July.

Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft, which has lobbied the FTC and the commission to block the deal, said in a letter to the FTC and the EU that regulators should require Google to ensure access to its AdSense network for online ad space. Microsoft said Google shouldn't be allowed to have exclusive deals or manipulate DoubleClick's software to give it preferential access to publishers' ad inventory.

`Spurious' Argument

Jeffrey Lindsay, an analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. in New York, said that Microsoft's bid for Yahoo make its arguments against the Google-DoubleClick deal ``spurious.''

``If Microsoft acquires Yahoo, they'll be the largest advertising network exchange with the combination of AQuantive and Right Media,'' he said. ``Microsoft-Yahoo would clearly have the ability to lock up the market. If Google were denied the DoubleClick transaction, that would be incongruous.''

Google has extended its lead over Yahoo and Microsoft in the Internet search market, capturing more than 60 percent of global queries and cashing in on the text ads that run alongside search results. The acquisition may further its expansion into new markets and build its business in graphical display ads.

To contact the reporter on this story: Matthew Newman in Brussels at Mnewman6@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: February 8, 2008 16:33 EST