Initiative for Competitive Online Marketplaces

Microsoft front

The Observer has seen an email sent by a director at leading lobby firm Burson-Marsteller to a number of top UK businesses. The email urges board members to raise the issue of Google's dominance of search engines with politicians, regulators and the media.

The email asks companies to join a new organisation - Initiative for Competitive Online Marketplaces - which in the next few weeks will make a series of announcements on Google, internet privacy and copyright.

The email's author is Jonathan Dinkeldein, a director of B-M. He admitted the firm was working with Microsoft on the initiative. A spokeswoman for Microsoft agreed that the firm has an 'ongoing relationship with Burson-Marsteller' but said it is not lobbying for Microsoft. When asked about the email, Dinkeldein admited the organisation was formed by Microsoft. Dinkeldein added that his initiative attracted several orgnanisations to join it. But executives contacted by The Observer told of their disquiet at being 'cold-called' in this manner… Others suggested that by not disclosing who Burson-Marsteller was representing, the firm was breaking the spirit of political lobby firms' code of conduct.

BM also failed to register Microsoft on the APPC’s register. After discussions with BM, APPC agreed with them that Microsoft had not been a PA client at the time. No action was taken.