U.s. Watchdog Says Google's Skybox Deal Raises Commodity Trade Concern

[Ron Burgundy]

By Edward McAllister NEW YORK (Reuters) - Consumer watchdog Public Citizen has called on U.S. regulators to conduct a review of Google Inc's recent acquisition of aerospace startup Skybox Imaging, concerned that Skybox's satellite technology may aid manipulation of commodity markets. In a letter to federal energy and trading regulators on Friday, Public Citizen said that access to Skybox's satellite images of oil, gas and power infrastructure is already helping deep-pocketed firms such as banks and hedge funds "gain a financial trading intelligence advantage" in commodities. Commodity traders already subscribe to Skybox data which includes satellite imagery of oil shipments, pipeline activities and storage sites, Tyson Slocum, director of Public Citizen’s Energy Program, wrote in the letter addressed to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the Commodities Futures Trading Commission and the Federal Trade Commission.

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