“Microsoft Corp. has stepped up its pursuit of a deal to buy Yahoo Inc., two newspapers reported on Friday, as the two companies reenter talks to strike a deal amid huge growth from rival Google Inc.,” Reuters reports.
“Yahoo shares jumped 14.6 percent to $32.20 in electronic trading on Friday, while Microsoft shares fell 1.4 percent to $30.53,” Reuters reports.
Reuters reports, “The two companies have held informal deal talks over the years. But the latest approach comes as Microsoft seeks to ink a deal in the wake of Google’s expansion.”
“Google agreed to buy DoubleClick Inc. last month for $3.1 billion, accelerating a push into the graphic ad market. Google beat out Microsoft and Yahoo to win the deal, sources said,” Reuters reports.
Full article here.
The Register’s story on this mentions that EMI is up for sale. That’s why it would end DRM, to push up the sale price to other labels. They’d bankroll any price to end DRM-less downloads.
Yahoo down the drain.
“Allied Powers of Google and Apple versus the Axis Powers of Microsoft and Yahoo.”
And lo, AOL will be asked to hold the camera and film the digital carnage. And soon after the battles are over, the Mighty Powers in charge will get annoyed verily and bespeak unto AOL to get lost or get eaten. So it shall be blogged, so it shall be done.
“….but is headed towards Uranus”
He is already at Ur(my)anus, because I have to use his crappy products at work.
MW: (heavy), bloated, clunky
Who’s buying who?
A purchase like this reminds me of Apple’s purchase of NeXT, Inc. NeXT management took over Apple.
Yahoo is much stronger as an internet portal, email service and search enginge than is MSFT’s forays. If MSFT were to buy Yahoo I see the same thing happening with MSFT management (bye-bye).
Actually, the stock is not tanking… One might say it’s going nowhere fast, but it’s actually on a slow incline. It spent roughly 5 years between 23 and 27. It’s past 30 now.
True, the company is losing plenty onits Mobile, Xbox, Zune and multi-media efforts. But it’s still making beaucoup bucks from Windows, Office and Server products.
Sounds like an excellent time to minimize my connection to Yahoo! and replace it with Google. Not that Google services are any better for me, just that I’d rather not use MS where possible. Unlimited email storage? Watch it pile up!
.Mac, please – please – please upgrade your capacities to nearly match the free options.
DLMeyer – the Voice of G.L.Horton’s Stage Page Pod-Cast
MW=matter – as in, does it really …?
Yeah, but MSFT stock is still worth less today than it was in 1999. Meanwhile, we all know what AAPL has done since then.
Put a dress on a pig and it’s still a PIG.
Right, Ballmer?
“Ur(my)anus” Is that an ancient Sumerian hieroglyphic? I’ve been wondering why my history professor would write that on some of our papers.
Yahoo is already anti-Macintosh with their horrible video & audio support. Brace yourselves for things to get MUCH MUCH worse.
“A purchase like this reminds me of Apple’s purchase of NeXT, Inc. NeXT management took over Apple.”
Or when AOL took over Time Warner–and AOL’s managment was out the door in a year.
Yahoo! management could really strengthen Microsoft. Terry Semel spent about 25 years at Warner Brothers. Movie studio guys can eat anyone for lunch.
If Microsoft buys Yahoo!, Ballmer had better watch his back.
Microsoft buy Yahoo? I just don’t get it.
They already have the phenomenally successful Live Search, MSN user system, online mapping tools and, of course, Internet Explorer. People are banging down the door to be a part of Microsoft’s magnificent internet ecosystem. When given the choice, internet users pick Microsoft, and for good reason.
This doesn’t make any sense for the computing world’s most innovative and popular software maker.
Your potential. Our passion.™
M$ theyre such desperate bastards these days arn’t they?
pathetic scum.
The article contains an important typo. Microsoft is actually buying Yahoo Serious. “He’s the Zune of the entertainment industry!” said Steve Ballmer, in a rare display of truthfulness. “His track record of innovation and acclaim is on par with my own, and we’re sure he’ll be a good fit at Microsoft.”
“Ballmer had better watch his back.”
Not possible. His head and neck are much too thick to rotate. He pays people for that.
This is pure desperation on Microsoft’s part. In a bid to close some distance between them and Google they think that by buying Yahoo’s presence on the Net it equates to more revenue for MSN.
Google commands a 53 percent search footprint and continues to expand by developing myriad forms of productivity software with real value.
Microsoft’s MSN footprint garners a measly 10 percent, but coupled with Yahoo’s 22 percent and they leapfrog into a distant second place behind Google. Microsoft is being true to form with their Embrace and Extinguish method of making themselves appear to be the best solution.
I believe all Microsoft will accomplish at the end of the day, with this extraordinary move, will be to diminish the value of Yahoo and undermine the brand.
And they can start calling themselves, MicroHoo
…because one day soon no-one will remember who the hell they were.
Sorry TowerTone..just read your comment. Ooops!
If Microsoft buys Yahoo, I’m out. I’m cancelling my yahoo email account and deleting my Yahoo IM and moving to Gmail and Gtalk.
Yes… that’ll be the end of my Yahoo days. I’ll move fully to gmail at that point.
Sad, Sad
I actually LIKE some of what Yahoo does…
I guess it will have be to be called
YaSoft
Hey, let them both spiral down the flushed commode together. I don’t do Yahoo, but I do do Google, and it all started with that simple search box the top-right in Safari. This possible acquisition really shows M$’s desperation and them foreseeing that the death spiral is truly beginning.
Comeback of the decade goes to Apple, and funny, M$ had more to do with it than Apple. ha
50 billion? Crazy.
OK, so it probably won’t be a cash-only deal.
It’s a big f*cking bet. If they fail, it will be a dot-com style money-burning festival, with lots of blood on the floor.
And chances are not bad that come Mai 2012, the combined MSFT-YHOO will be at the same position MSFT is now. Perhaps 15% or 20% market-share, instead of 10.
The music here plays as long as MSFTs institutional investors like to hear it.
With 12 billion in cash reserve, I wish Apple would, instead of courting game developers, just start their own cool gaming company and use Xcode and core animation to get it started. The tiny iPod games show alot of potential…what if Apple took it seriously.
Later, it would evolve into ApplePLAY to go along with AppleTV to fart on the XBox.
Then what myth or misconception would still be out there for people to use as an excuse? Boot camp would no longer get any downloads.