BREAKING: Microsoft to Buy Yahoo for $44.6 Billion

mehacomp_91

- Now Google will have something to chew on!


Inits race to become the runner-up on the search engine and onlineadvertising markets, Microsoft is about to give Google a littlesomething to chew on. The Redmond company is looking to buy Yahoo forno less the $44.6 billion. Microsoft has just announced the proposedacquisition of Yahoo for $31 per share. According to current estimates,the transaction is valued at no less than $44.6 billion and Microsoftis to offer both cash and stock. Yahoo                         has been increasingly losing its position on the search engine market, as well as its audience eroded by social networks.

The latest financial results posted by the Sunnyvale Internet giantfeature a consistent loss, with profit dropping to $660 million for2007, down from $751 million in 2006. Yahoo was even preparing to layoff a reported 1,000 workers of its 14,300 workforce, after the poorfinancial results of the past year. Microsoft's proposed acquisitionoffers shareholders a 62% premium to current trading price for Yahoo!The Redmond company has presented its proposition to Yahoo's Board ofDirectors.

"We have great respect for Yahoo!, and together we can offer anincreasingly exciting set of solutions for consumers, publishers andadvertisers while becoming better positioned to compete in the onlineservices market," said Steve Ballmer, chief executive officer ofMicrosoft. "We believe our combination will deliver superior value toour respective shareholders and better choice and innovation to ourcustomers and industry partners."

"Our lives, our businesses, and even our society have beenprogressively transformed by the Web, and Yahoo! has played apioneering role by building compelling, high-scale services andinfrastructure," said Ray Ozzie, chief software architect at Microsoft."The combination of these two great teams would enable us to jointlydeliver a broad range of new experiences to our customers that neitherof us would have achieved on our own."

Yahoo has failed to officially respond or comment on the acquisitionproposal from Microsoft. Still, it is clear that the Redmond companywill not hesitate in the least to cough up no less than $44.6 billionfor Yahoo. The aims is of course the online advertising market, whichis estimated to double in the next couple of years, from $40 billion in2007 to nearly $80 billion by 2010. Microsoft revealed that the move tobuy Yahoo was made as a measure to counter Google and its increasingdominance over the online advertising market.

"The combined assets and strong services focus of these two companieswill enable us to achieve scale economics while reaching R&Dcritical mass to deliver innovation breakthroughs," said Kevin Johnson,president of the Platforms & Services Division of Microsoft. "Theindustry will be well served by having more than one strong player,offering more value and real choice to advertisers, publishers andconsumers."


http://news.softpedia.com/news/BREAKING-Microsoft-To-Buy-Yahoo-for-44-6-Billion-77754.shtml

RedMage

hurmm... hurmm... hurmm....
apa agaknya microsoft leh buat utk jatuhkan rank #1 google klu dia dpt beli yahoo!

msn+yahoo!=

szerone9

msn+yahoo=mashoon

0001

Aku rasa bukan main intention MS nak jatuhkan google... financially Yahoo memang power buat duit... adspace and YM... imagine sekarang MS sah control nearly SEMUA instant messengers nyer users.

szerone9

Microsoft Makes Unexpected $44.6B Offer for Internet Icon Yahoo

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Microsoft Corp. has pounced on slumping Internet icon Yahoo Inc. with an unsolicited takeover offer of $44.6 billion in its boldest bid yet to challenge Google Inc.'s dominance of the lucrative online search and advertising markets.

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The surprise offer of $31 per share, made late Thursday and announced Friday, comes with Sunnyvale-based Yahoo in a vulnerable position.

With its profits steadily sliding, Yahoo's stock slipped to a four-year low earlier this week and a new management team has been trying to steer a turnaround but sees more turbulence through 2008.

The announcement sent Yahoo's share price up 60 percent in premarket trading, while Google fell 8 percent.

In a letter to Yahoo's board of directors, Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer indicated the world's largest software maker is determined to bring the two companies together.

To underscore its resolve, Microsoft is offer a 62 percent premium to Yahoo's closing stock price Thursday.

Since reaching a 52-week high of $34.08 in October, Yahoo shares have fallen 46 percent. Yahoo climbed $11.47 a share, or 59.8 percent, to $30.65 in premarket trading. Microsoft shares fell $1.95, or 6 percent, to $30.65.

Ballmer revealed in the letter that Yahoo had rebuffed a previous overture a year ago, saying it had a turnaround in the works. But he pointedly noted Yahoo has instead deteriorated significantly.

"A year has gone by, and the competitive situation has not improved," Ballmer added.

Microsoft's previous offer was rebuffed by Terry Semel, who stepped aside last year as chief executive under shareholder pressure.

Microsoft sent its latest takeover offer to Yahoo late Thursday, shortly after Semel resigned as the company's chairman. The letter is addressed to Semel's successors, new Chairman Roy Bostock and the current CEO, co-founder Jerry Yang, who is one of Yahoo's largest shareholders.

"Microsoft's consistent belief has been that the combination of Microsoft and Yahoo! clearly represents the best way to deliver maximum value to our respective shareholders, as well as create a more efficient and competitive company that would provide greater value and service to our customers," Ballmer wrote.

Yahoo didn't immediately respond for requests for comment.

Under terms of the proposed deal, Yahoo shareholders could choose to receive cash or Microsoft common shares, with the total purchase consisting of 50 percent cash and 50 percent stock.

Microsoft said it sees at least $1 billion in cost savings generated by the combination, and intends to offer significant retention packages to Yahoo engineers, key leaders and employees. The software giant said it believes the takeover would receive regulatory clearance and close in the second half of 2008.

Signaling Microsoft doesn't intend to take no for an answer, Ballmer wrote that the company "reserves the right to pursue all necessary steps to ensure that Yahoo's shareholders are provided with the opportunity to realize the value inherent in our proposal."

Google shares fell $46.55, or 8.3 percent, to $517.95 in premarket trading after the Mountain View-based company reported fourth-quarter earnings that missed analyst estimates.

While Yahoo is struggling, Microsoft is thriving. The Redmond, Wash.-based company last week forecast a rosy 2008 -- despite broader economic worries -- after it blew by Wall Street's expectations for a second consecutive quarter.



dari www.yahoo.com

microsoft monopoli?

bzzts

microsoft terdesak...

bill gate tak cukup makan kot...

Kilokahn

Nanti jadi apa? MicroHoo! ?

RedMage

sure kekal nama yahoo!
yahoo! dah kukuh...
tmtouch+celcom=celcom

[ Last edited by  RedMage at 2-2-2008 06:18 AM ]

bzzts

eh, microsoft yg beli Yahoo!, mesti la nama YAHOO tu yg tenggelam...

mehacomp_91

tuka jadi LIVE gak kot

zarcoss

klu aku, aku nak beli RM44.6 je.. tu je yang aku mampu...

RedMage

IMO, trend company kaya tp tak control market beli company kecil (yahoo! tak kecil tp still tak sekaya microsoft) dia akan kekal nama tu...



imagine type url yahoo tp di redirect ke site MSN... duh

apa2 pun aku akan google

apit_skynet

REDMOND, Wash. - Microsoft Corp. has pounced on slumping Internet iconYahoo Inc. with an unsolicited takeover offer of $44.6 billion in itsboldest bid yet to challenge Google Inc.抯 dominance of the lucrativeonline search and advertising markets.

kroit92

pendeknyer artikel..

Sasori

snang nk phm

oobi

betul tu. yahoo is too big of a name to just let it go. it's a branded name. microsoft will definitely keep it - microsoft yahoo!?

shirayuki

Tak sabar nak tengok hasil pencantuman ni.

mehacomp_91

Will Yahoo Say 'I Do' to a Microsoft Marriage?
- Or will it play hard to get?

Today, February 1st, 2007, Microsoft came down with a consistent $44.6 billion - cash and stock - marriage proposal to Yahoo. The offer marks an aggressive move from Microsoft that has went public with the takeover bid, after it was turned down by Yahoo on several occasions in the past. The combination of Yahoo and Microsoft would end up creating a new power house on the search engine and online advertising markets that will go head to head with Google. Of course, it all hangs in balance at this point in time, as Yahoo has called the offer unsolicited and only said that it would take it into consideration.

"Yahoo a leading global Internet company, today said that it has received an
unsolicited proposal from Microsoft to acquire the Company. The Company said that its Board of Directors will evaluate this proposal carefully and promptly in the context of Yahoo's strategic plans and pursue the best course of action to maximize long-term value for shareholders," Yahoo revealed in an official response.

With its search engine market share slipping, audience eroding and profits having fallen to $660 million in 2007, from $751 million in 2006, Yahoo cannot really afford to play hard to get. The moment could not be more fertile for Microsoft's acquisition proposal, especially since the Redmond company is offering shareholders a 62% premium to current trading price for Yahoo.

"In February 2007, I received a letter from your Chairman indicating the view of the Yahoo! Board that 'now is not the right time from the perspective of our shareholders to enter into discussions regarding an acquisition transaction.' According to that letter, the principal reason for this view was the Yahoo! Board抯 confidence in the 'potential upside' if management successfully executed on a reformulated strategy based on certain operational initiatives, such as Project Panama, and a significant organizational realignment. A year has gone by, and the competitive situation has not improved," Microsoft Chief Executive Office, Steve Ballmer, stated in the letter addressed to Yahoo's board of Directors.

The acquisition is of course aimed at Google's dominance over the online advertising market. By swallowing Yahoo, Microsoft revealed that it would also retain all employees up to key leaders, and that the respective services offered by the Sunnyvale company would be melted into Microsoft's. The Redmond company referred specifically to the scale economics of the two advertising platforms, the growth of the R&D capacity, the increase in operational efficiencies and a stronger focus on delivering innovation for the video, mobile services, online commerce, social media, and social platforms.

"Due to the importance of these discussions and the value represented by our proposal, we expect the Yahoo! Board to engage in a full review of our proposal. My leadership team and I would be happy to make ourselves available to meet with you and your Board at your earliest convenience. Depending on the nature of your response, Microsoft reserves the right to pursue all necessary steps to ensure that Yahoo!抯 shareholders are provided with the opportunity to realize the value inherent in our proposal. We believe this proposal represents a unique opportunity to create significant value for Yahoo!抯 shareholders and employees, and the combined company will be better positioned to provide an enhanced value proposition to users and advertisers," Ballmer stated.

http://news.softpedia.com/news/W ... arriage-77790.shtml

RedMage

If Microsoft Buys Yahoo: What We'd Love--and Hate

Put together two giants like these and there are bound to be some good results and some nasty ones. Here are 11 of our dreams and nightmares.
Tom Spring
Friday, February 01, 2008 03:45 PM PST

It's the year 2010. Microsoft owns Yahoo and has just changed the name of Flickr to Microsoft Flickr Live Photo-Sharing Service for Digital Camera Enthusiasts. The service is still free, but Windows Vista users will have to validate their copy of Vista as "genuine" first to use it. What has Microsoft wrought?

That's just one of the nightmares we can foresee from a Microsoft-Yahoo merger. But some good things could ensue for computer users too. Here's what we'd love - and hate - to see happen.

Love: Sending a Wake-Up Call to Google

Google has been untouchable in many aspects when it comes to search, Web innovations, and free cool services such as Google Maps. But perhaps Google has grown too complacent. While we are waiting to see what becomes of Google's mobile strategy, we're less enthralled by services such as Knol. We want to see the combined force of Microsoft and Yahoo give Google an honest run for its money when it comes to innovative online services.

Hate: Goodbye, Beloved Services

The shuttering of Yahoo or MSN services is something we'd hate to see (actually, we wouldn't shed any tears over Windows Live), but it's inevitable some will get the axe, given the overlapping services owned by Microsoft and Yahoo. The merged company would simply create too many redundant services and the odds are some of our beloved services would be killed. Branded services such as Yahoo Mail and Hotmail would survive, but there is a good chance they'd share one development team. Over time the services would become virtually identical, sharing features, functions, bugs, and limitations. Microsoft's instant messaging system sneezes, for example, and Yahoo Messenger catches a cold.

Love: Yahoo Boosts Microsoft Live

We think both behemoths could learn a lot from the other especially when it comes to the look, feel, and usability of Web pages and services. We'd like to see Windows Live integrated into simpler interfaces. Right now there is Windows Live and Microsoft Office Live Small Business. Both are not tied to directly either to the Windows OS or Microsoft Office. Both Microsoft Live sites seem so disconnected.

Yahoo was best in the early days at keeping the interface simple on services such as Yahoo Travel. Today's Yahoo can't match the minimalism of many Google offerings, but it still has designs that are simpler and easier to use than many counterparts at Microsoft.

Hate: Microsoft Yahoo Chaos

Combining the two giants will create confusion.  Could you use your MSN Messenger ID to login to Yahoo Mail? Will your Passport be accepted at Yahoo's border?

Love: Uber Media Site

We'd like to see MSN-Yahoo team with NBC (and related partners) and a variety of Internet TV startups to make a one-stop destination for video content. Good sites like Hulu.com and other Web-based video on demand sites are spread across the Web in a hodgepodge manner with no central site to serve as an online media master.

Yahoo is much more a traditional media company than Google at this stage and already offers great text and some TV news. Couple Yahoo with MSN and Microsoft's Web technologies (such as Silverlight) and you could see the Web's first media powerhouse.

Hate: Two Big Brothers are Worse than One

Google is looking to gobble up DoubleClick, which has some not so positive privacy implications. Now if Microsoft buys Yahoo what Google doesn't know about you Microsoft will. It just is a bit too creepy to think of our digital footprints being so completely tracked. Live Search, Flickr, Yahoo News, MSN LIfestyle channel. With all its data it would have on us, Microsoft could come up with a personalized probability data feed that might be shockingly accurate.

Love: A True Search Competitor

Yahoo and MSN will finally give Google a run for its money when it comes to search. Google owns 57 percent of the search engine market, and Yahoo and Microsoft own together 34 percent, according to Search Engine Watch . Given the combined search knowhow of Microsoft and Yahoo we'd like to see both breathe some new life into search technology. Yahoo already has some interesting tools such as Search Assistant and Shortcuts that can make searching easier than Google. Check out Microsoft's Live Search Club to see how Live Search is getting smarter. Together we'd like to see Microsoft and Yahoo make search results more relevant and smarter.

Love: A Mobile Marriage

Microsoft and Yahoo combined would have a dynamite mobile offering without much heavy lifting. We'd like to see a marriage of Microsoft's Windows Mobile operating system and its mobile business focus merged with Yahoo. We love Yahoo's mobile offerings and its mobile search, maps, and email. Yahoo already has close ties to mobile carriers so it might not take long for the strengths of both mobile teams to trickle down to our cell phones.

Hate: A Mobile Monopoly

If the mobile offerings from Microhoo! are too strong, they could strangle Google's Android mobile operating system at birth. And that would be a shame, since the open source effort promises users a more customizable phone than they've ever had. Fortunately, Android has some significant backers of its own and a nascent developers' community (Mobile Handset Alliance). But given Microsoft's industry clout and its cutthroat competitive spirit and Yahoo's cozy relationship with carriers, Google's Android platform could be in for a big fight.

Love: Yahoo Maps Get Less Lame

Live Maps seems to be one of the few Microsoft web apps that are actually good, and it may actually be better than Google Maps. (It certainly seems more up to date.) Meanwhile, Yahoo Maps suffers from a lame interface and more limited view options.

Love: YaHotmail!

Neither Yahoo Mail nor Hotmail is all that compelling on its own, but if Hotmail's new interface were applied to Yahoo's mail service (which doesn't kill your account so quickly if you don't log in), it might actually be worth using.

acit_hensem

Pehhh... Berita panas nih!!!