Yahoo (NSDQ: YHOO) has made its first public comments on the European Commission’s review of Google’s (NSDQ: GOOG) $3.1 billion purchase of DoubleClick, and, as you can probably guess, its take is pretty negative. In a submission to the Commission, Yahoo says the purchase, if approved, will mean higher prices for online display ads and less competition in the digital publishing sector. Andrew Cecil, public policy head for Yahoo Europe: “Combining Google’s search business with Doubleclick’s ad technology will strengthen Google’s dominant position in Europe. The competitive landscape for online advertising will be negatively impacted.” (via Sunday Telegraph)

Meanwhile, the Guardian is reporting that Neelie Kroes, the competition commissioner for the EU, has said that the Commission will not investigate potential privacy issues surrounding the Google/DoubleClick deal as part of its review of the purchase: “We are looking at the influence on competition and that’s it.” More on PCUK here.