The World Association of Newspapers on Monday released a statement announcing its stance on the issue, pointing out that the deal could potentially crush newspapers' ad revenue-generating chances online: “WAN believes that the competition that currently exists between Google and Yahoo is absolutely essential to ensuring that our member titles receive competitive returns for online advertising on their sites, and for obtaining competitive prices when they purchase paid search advertising,” said Gavin O’Reilly, President of the Paris-based WAN, in letters to the directors of the three agencies.

“In our view, the proposed advertising deal between Google and Yahoo would seriously weaken that competition, resulting in less revenues and higher prices for our members. WAN is also concerned that this deal would give Google unwarranted market power over important segments of online advertising.”

The Paris-based WAN, of which SFN is a project, represents 77 national newspaper associations and 18,000 newspapers around the world.

WAN contends the ad deal would lessen competition and cut revenue, which would lead to higher costs for newspapers and even greater dependence on Google, SFN reported Monday.

Newspaper publishers are concerned “the deal would disincentivise Yahoo! to compete against Google in Europe, and that the two companies control nearly all of the market in Europe, so if they chose to set terms together, it could have a particularly detrimental impact,” CNBC reported.

Microsoft Vice President and General Council spoke before a U.S. Congressional Committee on the subject.

“Never before in the history of advertising has one company been in a position to control prices on up to 90 percent of advertising in a single medium,” Smith told the Senate judiciary subcommittee on antitrust, competition policy and consumer rights, García Media reported Tuesday. “Not in television, not in radio, not in publishing. It should not happen on the Internet.”