Two months after Google CEO Eric Schmidt departed Apple's board, Arthur Levinson, who serves on both boards, has resigned from Google's.

The move was greeted with pleasure by the Federal Trade Commission, which is in the process of examining overlapping board memberships for companies whose interests compete. Google and Apple have increasingly crossed each other's paths with their introduction of rival mobile platforms: the iPhone and Android.

Levinson "should be commended for recognizing that overlapping board members between competing companies raise serious antitrust issues," stated FTC Chairman John Leibovitz.

US law states no one is allowed to serve on the boards of two companies that are direct rivals.

In May, the FTC investigated whether the presence of Levinson and Schmidt on both Google and Apples' boards could lessen competition between us. For his part, Levinson has been on Google's board since 2004.

The last remaining link between the two firms is former US Vice President Al Gore, who serves on Apple's board and is an advisor to Google.