BREAKING: Microsoft Proposes Yahoo! Takeover at $31 per Share (44 Billion $ Takeover)

[Full of Win]

This is NOT a joke.

www.cnbc.com

More: Microsoft Makes $44.6 Billion Bid for Yahoo after Yahoo Rejects Partnerships, Merger

[Cromulent]

More: Microsoft Makes $44.6 Billion Bid for Yahoo after Yahoo Rejects Partnerships, Merger[/quote]

Interesting. I would imagine that Google will be a bit worried about this.

Apple - Google merger anyone?

[Abstract]

Does it really matter? What can Microsoft do with Yahoo that they couldn't do with their MSN service?

I can't really see this being good for Microsoft, really. If they're trying to compete with Google, I guess it may help, but is it worth $45 billion?


And this really should be in the Current Events forum. Not all news belongs here just because the Community forum gets more traffic.

[mward333]

Yeah, it's really amazing.... I can't even comprehend numbers that large!

I don't understand how this will help Microsoft either. I guess that they want to take their search technology to the next level, and this was the way to do it. Perhaps it is their only viable way to stay caught-up with Google, because Google sure appears to have a lot of energy and innovation right now.

[Zwhaler]

Yeah I also agree I don't see how this would help Microsoft, but Microsoft probably has enough money to make this seem like not too huge of a deal.

edit: just kidding!

[thefunkymunky]

M$ buys Yahoo! and turns it into something crap. MSN Search anyone?

[tringo]

Originally Posted by Zwhaler

Yeah I also agree I don't see how this would help Microsoft, but Microsoft probably has enough money to make this seem like not too huge of a deal.

Yea Microsoft has about $30bn just in cash right now.

[Martin C]

I just hope that they don't mess with flickr. I could careless that they are aquiring Yahoo; just leave flickr as it is.

[superleccy]

I think it makes sense for Microsoft, but I hope it doesn't happen.

I've never liked any of Microsoft's web services, but I do use a few of Yahoo!'s (mail, stocks, flickr, kelkoo). MS seem to keep trying to get a decent web presence... and failing. They may as well just buy Yahoo!, so they can screw that up that as well. Go Microsoft!

SL

[sanford]

Originally Posted by Zwhaler

Yeah I also agree I don't see how this would help Microsoft, but Microsoft probably has enough money to make this seem like not too huge of a deal.

Because you say, Man, google this for me would you. Apple's still doing well if you check out the charts on Yahoo! Finance. Hey, Jim skyped me from Osaka; yeah, he's still there on his Fulbright deal. Man, you should put this on your iPod, listen to it while you take the train to work (but the person to whom your speaking has a Creative Zen).

And you say, with AIM, Yahoo! Messenger, Skype, Jabber, that idiot buddy of mine still insists on using MSN Messenger, so I have to keep it on my computer.

That's how this will help Microsoft.

Personally, I love the off-to-the-ovens-with-you tone in the announcement. You know, just delousing, that's all, move along, move along. That or a more Ridley Scott does PK Dick "A fabulous new life awaits you in the off-world colonies."

[Digitalclips]

Originally Posted by Zwhaler

Yeah I also agree I don't see how this would help Microsoft, but Microsoft probably has enough money to make this seem like not too huge of a deal.

edit: just kidding!

It might be MS looking for a new business down the road. Once everyone has 'switched' what else are they going to do?

[thesdx]

Microsoft will never hit it big in the search engine market. They're way too late, and plus, "Google" has already made it into the dictionary as a verb. Nearly everyone uses it. They won't be able to monopolize this industry just by setting Windows Live as the default search provider, either. People are smart now. They know how to get to Google.

[janstett]

Originally Posted by thesdx

Microsoft will never hit it big in the search engine market. They're way too late, and plus, "Google" has already made it into the dictionary as a verb. Nearly everyone uses it. They won't be able to monopolize this industry just by setting Windows Live as the default search provider, either. People are smart now. They know how to get to Google.

I worked for C|Net from 1997-1999. At the time, Google was famous for its search engine, and not www.google.com, it didn't exist as it does today. They were famous for writing the best search engine, and this search engine was used by other sites. I think Yahoo even, at one point, used Google's search engine.

When they launched their own consumer site, I scoffed. Everybody already knows Yahoo, after all. When they went public, I also scoffed, as they missed the initial IPO waves of the internet boom and were pretty late to go public.

Yeah, my predictions worked out well.

Moral: Things can change overnight. There was a time when Yahoo ruled the roost and Google was a big underdog late to the party. But they won because their results were better and the site design, then as now, was simple and easy to read. Need another example? How about Netscape? They were the poster child for the internet boom.

MSN was launched at the same time as Windows 95, intended to be a built-in equivalent to AOL. I remember the "Chicago" betas with MSN service didn't even have a browser yet, you navigated MSN through a folder metaphor like Finder or Explorer. By the time Windows 95 was ready for launch, the revolution happened and they had to come up with the first Internet Explorer and redo MSN from scratch. I think it's been redone several times since then.

Microsoft correctly perceives Google as a threat. It also sees how Google is making money, but turning MSN Live Search into a winner is hard. Just flat out buying Yahoo helps them consolidate the #2 spot. And IMO Yahoo is doing a slow fade anyway.

[Blue Velvet]

Originally Posted by Abstract

And this really should be in the Current Events forum. Not all news belongs here just because the Community forum gets more traffic.

Completely agreed but we're on the main news forum instead; it's that newsworthy.

[davidjearly]

Originally Posted by Abstract

Does it really matter? Why can Microsoft do with Yahoo that they couldn't do with their MSN service?

I can't really see this being good for Microsoft, really. If they're trying to compete with Google, I guess it may help, but is it worth $45 billion?


And this really should be in the Current Events forum. Not all news belongs here just because the Community forum gets more traffic.

I can see it being important to Microsoft who are still struggling to gain marketshare in the search engine market.

As of Jan 2008, marketshare is as follows:

Google: 77%
Yahoo!: 12%
Microsoft: 6%
Others: 5%

So, if MS could bought Yahoo!, it would give them more power in the search engine market. Still no where near Google though.

[Abstract]

Originally Posted by davidjearly

I can see it being important to Microsoft who are still struggling to gain marketshare in the search engine market.

As of Jan 2008, marketshare is as follows:

Google: 77%
Yahoo!: 12%
Microsoft: 6%
Others: 5%

Exactly. They're paying $45 billion dollars for another 12% of the market. They're paying a LOT of money to be 2nd place. They may as well buy the other 5% instead of Yahoo.

[theBB]

Originally Posted by Abstract

Does it really matter? What can Microsoft do with Yahoo that they couldn't do with their MSN service?

They can make all of Yahoo services to properly work only with Internet Explorer.

[brewno]

Damn, now Flickr will be Microsoft's. That's not cool.

[jmarte]

Yahoo...do not resist...you will be assimilated...bzzzrt..oh wait, yahoo just got the BSOD..Thanks Microsoft!!!!

[madmax_2069]

Originally Posted by theBB

They can make all of Yahoo services to properly work only with Internet Explorer.

heh, isn't that what Yahoo just about does now. i remember when a Mac could not use videos or anything, still today their music will not work on a Mac, their IM service sucks on Mac as well.

[theBB]

Originally Posted by madmax_2069

heh, isn't that what Yahoo just about does now. i remember when a Mac could not use videos or anything, still today their music will not work on a Mac, their IM service sucks on Mac as well.

Well, yes, but at least Yahoo Mail, MyYahoo (at least, the "classic" one), Yahoo Finance and I guess Flickr works fine on whichever browser I use.

Outside of Office, MS has not done much innovative product development. Visio and MapPoint was really useful and user friendly, but MS bought the original companies. It copies Google Maps (even though they could leverage MapPoint years before Google bought that mapping company) iPod/iTunes and even Windows 95 and now Vista. Has Xbox turned a cumulative profit, yet? Well, at least Xbox provides a strong competitor in video game consoles, instead of killing them off.

[patrick0brien]

My $0.02 is that this is a good thing for everybody.

Primarily that this is great news for the economy. And I'm glad because the news fad now is to doom-and-gloom the economy by yelling all the bad news, while ignoring the good. They can't ignore this.

Hopefully this will lead to healthy companies buying up not-so-healthy ones, and generating much more consolidated engines of productivity.

Love MS or Hate MS, they do provide a lot of productivity to the economy both directly with their products, and indirectly with the cottage-industries of tech support, developers(DEVELOPERS!DEVELOPERS!), et al.

And Yahoo needs the help.

Oh, and the acquisition of Yahoo by MS will tie MS up (hopefully while remaining fiscally healthy) for a while, allowing the Innovators to keep pressing ahead.

[BRLawyer]

Originally Posted by Abstract

Does it really matter? What can Microsoft do with Yahoo that they couldn't do with their MSN service?

I can't really see this being good for Microsoft, really. If they're trying to compete with Google, I guess it may help, but is it worth $45 billion?


And this really should be in the Current Events forum. Not all news belongs here just because the Community forum gets more traffic.

MS is CRAP, Yahoo is CRAP, full stop. I actually hope MS goes on and pays that ridiculous amount of cash in order to accelerate its demise in the IT market...they will gain nothing from it and will just keep on floundering...MS is DEAD.

[diamond.g]

Originally Posted by BRLawyer

MS is CRAP, Yahoo is CRAP, full stop. I actually hope MS goes on and pays that ridiculous amount of cash in order to accelerate its demise in the IT market...they will gain nothing from it and will just keep on floundering...MS is DEAD.

Honest question, how is a company that has a market cap ~2x as big as Apple and makes more money than Apple dead?

[qtip919]

Originally Posted by diamond.g

Honest question, how is a company that has a market cap ~2x as big as Apple and makes more money than Apple dead?

oh, its just dead because he says so...

seriously, when the MS bashing begins around here, the sign on the door reads:

Please check your brains at the door and begin spouting your fanatical devotion to Apple which has no desire to bleed you dry of every penny you have...