Facebook has hired Google executive Sheryl Sandberg as chief operating officer to help expand the social networking website’s global presence and revenue opportunities.

Sandberg, who starts at Facebook on March 24, has worked at Google for six years most recently as vice president of global online sales and operations.

Crucially for Facebook, which is looking to develop significant new revenue streams from its 100 milllion-plus global unique user base, Sandberg was responsible for building and managing Google’s online sales channels including flagship revenue-generation products AdWords and AdSense.

At Facebook, where she will report directly to founder and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg, she will be responsible for sales, marketing, business development, human resources, public policy, privacy and communications.

“Sheryl is a great manager who will help scale Facebook’s operations globally,” said Zuckerberg.

“She has relevant experience and a track record of scaling business operations and building new kinds of advertising networks. Sheryl understands Facebook’s goal of connecting everyone in the world and is passionate about building a business that will enable us to realise this mission.”

Sandberg was also instrumental in launching Google’s philanthropic arm Google.org and was previously chief of staff to the US Treasury secretary under former president Bill Clinton.

Her appointment comes weeks after the departure of senior Facebook executive Owen Van Natta.

Van Natta had held the role of chief revenue officer and vice-president of operations, after shifting roles last year from his previous position of chief operating officer.

[via guardian.co.uk]

European regulators plan to approve Google Inc.’s proposed $3.1 billion takeover of DoubleClick Inc. without conditions, rejecting complaints by Microsoft Corp. that the deal would hurt competition, according to three people with direct knowledge of the case.

European Union antitrust officials, who have been investigating the deal since September, plan to rule that the purchase may proceed without changes, said the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the decision isn’t public. The ruling may come as early as March 11.

“The deal will ultimately go through,” said Greg Sterling, an analyst at Sterling Market Intelligence in San Francisco. Google, owner of the most popular Internet search engine, doesn’t compete with online advertiser DoubleClick, he said.

EU approval would be a blow to Microsoft, which competes with Google in the $40.9 billion global online advertising market. Microsoft complained to U.S. and EU officials that it may be shut out of the combined company’s ad network.

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