Google Antitrust Probe Could Mean Years of Self-Defense

Google Inc. may be forced to spend years defending itself in a U.S. Federal Trade Commission investigation that could be the government’s biggest antitrust probe since the Microsoft Corp. case.

Even if Google ultimately prevails, the probe might create uncertainty around the company’s business, slowing its momentum, lawyers and analysts said. Federal courts ruled that Microsoft engaged in illegal monopoly practices in a dispute that stretched over two U.S. presidential administrations.