NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) - Concerns about Google dragged down technology stocks Monday morning, while the broader market was mixed, ahead of this week's key testimony from new Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke.

The Nasdaq composite (down 10.79 to 2,251.09, Charts) fell 0.5 percent. The Dow Jones industrial average (down 16.65 to 10,902.40, Charts) added a few points and the broader Standard & Poor's 500 (down 3.28 to 1,263.71, Charts) lost a few points in the early going.

Google (down $14.97 to $347.64, Research) slumped in the early going after an article in financial weekly Barron's said the tech leader's shares could be cut in half over the next year due to competition from Microsoft and Yahoo!, as well as pricing pressure for online ad sales, among other issues.

Other Web stocks fell in tandem and the Goldman Sachs Internet (Charts) index lost 0.8 percent.

In other news, Merrill Lynch (up $0.43 to $73.22, Research) is reportedly in talks to spend about $8 billion to buy a large stake in BlackRock (up $15.49 to $147.00, Research), a money management firm, according to the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times.

Investors are also focused on Wednesday's congressional testimony from new Fed chairman Bernanke, particularly concerning what he might hint about future Fed policy.

Stocks ended higher Friday after a tough session, but the major gauges were mixed for the week.

Treasury prices were little changed, with the 10-year note holding at 4.58 percent.

U.S. light crude oil for March delivery fell a penny to $61.83 a barrel in electronic trading.

In currency trading, the dollar rose modestly versus the euro and yen.

COMEX gold for April delivery fell $3.20 to $547 an ounce.

In global trade, major Asian markets slumped, with the Japanese Nikkei losing 2.3 percent. European markets were mixed at midday.

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