Google CEO hopes DoubleClick deal closes by yr-end

SEOUL (Reuters) - Internet search leader Google Inc. (GOOG.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) is open to new acquisitions and remains hopeful it can close the $3.1 billion purchase of Web ad supplier DoubleClick by end-2007 despite a U.S. federal probe, its CEO said on Wednesday.

"We're open to other (acquisitions) but there are no specific ones to announce," Google chief executive Eric Schmidt said at a news conference on the sidelines of the Seoul Digital Forum.

Schmidt reiterated Google's hope that it could complete the DoubleClick deal, which is currently the subject of an extended U.S. federal antitrust investigation.

"We are quite convinced that the proposed merger meets all appropriate U.S. laws," he said.

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and other Google rivals such as AT&T Inc. (T.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), have urged antitrust officials to examine the combination closely, saying it could give Google too much control over online advertising.

DoubleClick offers a digital marketplace that connects ad agencies, marketers and Web site publishers. It has more than 1,500 corporate clients.

Schmidt also said during a lecture Wednesday that Google was unlikely to buy a media content company.

"We made a decision to focus on what we're good at," he said, referring to the company's powerful search functions and other technology tools.

Schmidt had said earlier this month that the company continues to view small technology firms as the core target of its merger strategy.