Levinson Leaves Google’s Board Of Directors, Stays On Apple’s

Arthur Levinson, a member of Google’s board of directors since 2004, has resigned from that position effectively immediately.

Google’s announcement doesn’t give a reason for Levinson’s departure, but he’s also been on Apple’s board of directors since 2000. The growing competition between Google and Apple led Google CEO Eric Schmidt to leave Apple’s board this past summer. At the time, Apple CEO Steve Jobs said Schmidt’s “effectiveness as an Apple Board member will be significantly diminished” by the increasing overlap in what the two companies offer.

Earlier this year, the FTC launched an inquiry into possible anti-trust violations due to Schmidt and Levinson being on both boards. As Greg Sterling suggested in our coverage at the time, it seemed inevitable that both Schmidt and Levinson would have to leave one of their positions.