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Talk about a big deal. Microsoft has offered to purchase Yahoo
for $44 billion. If completed, the monstrosity would be an instant Google
competitor, combining the forces of two firms that alone have not been able to
compete with Google.
While the deal is a long way from coming to fruition, this
seems to make sense at first glance. Both Yahoo and Microsoft have had their
various struggles over the recent years. Yahoo has had a hard time focusing its
business on a core group of services, and its attempt to be all things to all
people has not been successful.
Microsoft’s attempts to enter the search market have been
lackluster at best, and there are more and more challenges to its core software
business coming from maturing open source programs, online applications by
Google and others, and Apple’s rise in popularity. The Vista
operating system is another example of a recent failure that has not earned the
public’s continuing trust.
Of course, the potential deal would have to clear antitrust
conflicts, but if Google & DoubleClick was not a problem for the
government, it seems unlikely that these two firms, both primarily in separate industries,
would create much trouble.
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