Google Is Spending More Than Ever On Lobbying While An FTC Fight Looms →

Google is gearing up for a potential antitrust suit from the Federal Trade Commission, or so it seems. 

The company has already spent $13.1 million on lobbying in the first three quarters in 2012, compared to the $9.7 million it shelled out in all of 2011, according to The Hill, which cited disclosure forms filed Monday.

Among the major firms Google has hired are Holland & Knight, Podesta, and Raben, which account for half a million dollars of Google's lobbying expenses, according to OpenSecrets.org.

Under pressure by the FTC's continued antitrust investigation and looming lawsuit, Google spent $4.2 million in Q3 compared to the $2.4 million it did in the same quarter last year, according to Politico.

The FTC is trying to figure out if the search giant manipulated the ranking of its search results in order to give its products — YouTube, Google Maps, and Google Shopping — an unfair advantage over rivals.

Microsoft, one of Google's biggest critics and search engine rival, by comparison, only spent $1.9 million over the past three months, according to The Hill.