US anti-trust regulators have begun an investigation into the search advertising partnership between Yahoo! and Google.
The investigation will look at whether the $800 million (£403 million) a year deal restricts competition in the market.
A report in the Washington Post said that Justice Department investigators behind the anti-trust probe will take evidence from Google, Yahoo and other large companies in the internet and media sectors.
The deal between the two companies was struck last month and allows Google to put some of search advertising next to search listings.
The deal was valued by Yahoo! at $800 million a year, and followed shortly after the company had rejected Microsoft’s $47.5 billion takeover bid.
The deal does not need approval from US anti-trust authorities because the two companies are not merging, although the US government can challenge the arrangement in court if it concludes that it would restrain competition between the two companies.
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