Google Inc. and Microsoft Corp. said on Thursday they agreed to settle pending litigation that had barred a former Microsoft executive from heading up the Web search firm"s research efforts in China. Microsoft said the former executive, Kai-fu Lee, Google and Microsoft had reached a mutual agreement and had agreed not to disclose specific terms.
The two firms, fierce rivals in the fast-growing and lucrative online advertising market, said they would make no further statements on the matter. "Microsoft, Dr. Lee and Google have reached an agreement that settles their pending litigation," Microsoft said in a statement, adding they "entered into a private agreement that resolves all issues to their mutual satisfaction."