The Federal Trade Commission quickly is becoming the sheriff of the World Wide Web.  Over the span of just 1 week, the government agency has launched antitrust investigations or inquiries into the business practices of Internet giants Google and Twitter. 

The Twitter inquiries began in response to complaints that Twitter is making it harder for some software developers to design applications that run in concert with the company’s service - i.e., its business practices harm competition.  Last week, it was reported the FTC would formally investigate Google's potential domination of the Web.  These latest actions confirm what the industry has been noticing in recent months - that the agency has been taking a more active role in examining the behavior of large Internet companies.  An FTC spokesperson declined to comment, as did a spokesperson for SF-based Twitter.

Twitter, which allows people to communicate in 140-character messages, has seen its usage surge since the company was founded 4 years ago.  The website is now used by 13% of U.S. adults online, up from 8% in November.  Twitter, which competes with social-networking leader Facebook, is trying to improve its products and attract more users and advertisers.  Last year, it added more features that matched what independent Twitter developers were already doing, such as applications for smartphones.

One developer, UberMedia, said in an e-mailed statement yesterday that “we have been contacted by the FTC and we intend to fully comply with their request for information.”   On its website, UberMedia describes itself as the leading independent developer of applications that help users find and communicate with one another on Twitter.   [Bloomberg, 7/1/11]