Microsoft powerhouse made offers to buy out Yahoo in whole, but dropped bids after ultimatums and warnings that they would pull bids if a decision couldn’t be reached. While many of us wondered if Microsoft was actually going to pull the plug, I for one was pleased that they did and displayed some authority over their statements regarding business transactions.
Not to say that Microsoft has been wishy-washy in the past, but I am pleased to see them sticking to their guns rather than making idle threats like so many other large company moguls do. The original buyout bid was 33 million dollars placed on May 3, 2008, but was dropped when negotiations came to a stand still.
Carl Icahn, a third party billionaire has announced just recently that if Microsoft and Yahoo can not reach an agreement he will launch his own proxy and place bids to acquire Yahoo himself! Carl Icahn himself and his team of shareholders hold over 2.5 billion dollars in shares while Icahn claims that he has additionally acquired an additional 59 million shares earlier this week!
While Microsoft appears to have “moved on” after the recent struggle with the company, new talks of partnership are milling in the rumor bin. Yahoo has stated that they would not sell the entire asset and company in whole to Microsoft but rather work on some other sort of agreement/partnership between the two companies.
While many officials are saying that Microsoft is attempting a desperate plea to aquire Yahoo to try and trump their arch-rival Google, I myself am not sure what the masterminds behind the “M” network have cooking behind closed doors. No guarantees have been made that anything will come of these new negotiations, but my instincts tell me that something big will be changing soon.
In an attempt to stall Google’s world domination, they have released Microsoft Office Live which has thus far been buggy and still trailing far behind Google aps and innovations placed to the public in 2007. Microsoft has even gone as far as holding contests for large amounts of money and prizes for special Live users, including the XBOX Elite, Zunes, and other miscellaneous items. Microsoft claims that thousands have already signed up for the beta program, but the numbers aren’t in and my hunch is that this may be a gross miscalculation.
Executives at Microsoft worry that if they do not reach an agreement with Yahoo, Carl Icahn and his associate shareholders will turn and make subsequent agreements with Google and further push Microsoft out of the top spot in the race to the top of the Internet Marketplace. Many blame the widespread popularity and user friendly ultimate Google machine for spurring this sudden hostile attempt from Microsoft to take over Yahoo. While I think they had a good idea initially in making a move to keep up with their competitors, the timing seems to be a little off and the Google vs Microsoft slap fight has got Yahoo stuck right in the middle.
I’m speechless. I can’t make a prediction as to which way the dice will roll if it would save my soul. Any guesses?
Thanks to Dawn Kawamoto with her post “Microsoft and Yahoo Re-enter Talks” on Cnet News
For More Info on The Carl Icahn Shareholder News Please Visit: “Icahn Pledges Proxy Fight for Yahoo-Microsoft Merger ” by Clint Boulton on eweek.com
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: advertising, AOL, Google, Microhoo, Microsoft-Yahoo acquisition, Time Warner
Microsoft may no longer be breathing down its neck, but Yahoo is still working on major deals with Google and Time Warner’s AOL that could significantly alter the Internet pioneer.
The nearer-term possibility is a partnership to use Google for delivering some ads next to Yahoo search results. That option apparently is still on track to be announced this week, perhaps Wednesday or Thursday, according to a source familiar with the situation.
The Google deal could increase Yahoo’s revenue, because Google gets more revenue per click for its ads, but it also could reinforce Google’s search-ad leadership and make it even harder for Yahoo to catch up with its own Panama system. And though Yahoo thinks it can address antitrust concerns by employing a system that’s open to other ad suppliers as well, regulatory scrutiny is a significant factor.
A deal to acquire AOL also is under active consideration, although talks haven’t progressed as far as with the Google arrangement, the source said. Under that deal, Yahoo would get AOL, sans its declining Internet access subscription business, and cash from Time Warner, and Time Warner would get a 20 percent stake in Yahoo.
Yahoo would use the cash to buy back its own stock, a move that could increase its value. Since most observers expect Yahoo’s price to drop Monday because Microsoft walked away, Yahoo likely will face pressure to boost its share price.
Another possibility Yahoo explored was a partnership with Fox Interactive, but that didn’t progress as far as the Time Warner deal, the source said.
Yahoo declined to comment on the possibilities.
