Athow.com: Internet, Media and Technology at its fullest

Musings of a Journalist lost in Technology

Feb

An Update on Microsoft and Yahoo

Posted by desire.athow Published in Deals

I am not a proponent of Microsoft buying Yahoo… Here’s what I said on Battellemedia about the whole thing.

Google’s bound to be the winner. Listen to this week’s TWIT podcast for some nice words from Scoble (whatever you might think of him).

If Yahoo refuses the bid, its shares will go down and it will slowly but surely wane away until finally someone buys its carcass: Google and Microsoft are winners

If Yahoo accepts the bid, Microhoo will take at least 18 months for the digestion to take place. Ever witnessed a Python eating an alligator.

The acquisition will take the focus away from MS’s core products and services and will make it even more vulnerable to Google.

IMHO, the web is not Microsoft’s favourite turf and although it has several great brands like MSN, IE and Live, it still lacks that little something that makes Google so dazzling.

You can read my complete coverage for the past week over at ITProPortal.com as well as a Snapshot of Techmeme’s coverage on Friday night.

One week later: Yahoo’s effect on Microsoft Share Prices

Yahoo shares RISE above Microsoft’s lower offer price

Google may seek Yahoo! alliance to rebuff Microsoft

Will Chinese government bid for Yahoo?

Microsoft and Yahoo : Who will be the winners?

Microsoft buying Yahoo : What it means for the rest of us

Kara Swisher / BoomTown:

Actually, It’s Not Quite Over Yet for Yahoo — While everyone is putting a fork in Yahoo and calling it done, it might take a bit longer for the troubled Internet company’s goose to be fully cooked. — Yes, the Yahoo board will be meeting today to formally discuss the Microsoft unsolicited bid of $31 a share.

Discussion: WebProNews, CenterNetworks, paidContent.org, Silicon Alley Insider, Joe Duck, Tech Trader Daily and Valleywag

–

Discussion:

David A. Utter / WebProNews: All Quiet On The Yahoo Front

Allen Stern / CenterNetworks: NYU Stern Professors to Offer Analysis of Microsoft’s Bid for Yahoo!

Rafat Ali / paidContent.org: Yahoo Updates: Another Board Meeting Wednesday: New Banker

Peter Kafka / Silicon Alley Insider: Yahoo’s D-Day: Postponed

Joe Duck: Yahoo - Game Over Dudes?

Eric Savitz / Tech Trader Daily: Yahoo: Awaiting The Inevitable

Nicholas Carlson / Valleywag: Yahoo board meeting postponed until Wednesday

» All Related Discussion

Michael Arrington / TechCrunch:

Yahoo Board To Determine Fate Of Company Today — Sources have indicated to us that Yahoo has scheduled a special board of directors meeting on Friday to determine, effectively, the fate of the company. After a week of hectic negotiating, it’s clear that no one is going to step …

Discussion: GigaOM, Silicon Alley Insider, Google Watch, Techland, Todd Bishop’s Microsoft Blog, Search Engine Journal, Between the Lines, AppScout, Daring Fireball, LiveSide, InformationWeek Weblog, TechConsumer, Electronista, p2pnet, Financial Times, Venture Chronicles, All about Microsoft, Digital Daily, deal architect, The Mac Observer, Valleywag, ParisLemon, Tech Trader Daily, Screenwerk, Search Engine Watch Blog, ZefHemel.com, HipMojo.com, Yahoo! Finance, Data Center Knowledge, PE HUB and Business Week

–

Discussion:

Om Malik / GigaOM: Asleep At The Wheel: The Yahoo Board

Henry Blodget / Silicon Alley Insider: Yahoo’s Likely Microsoft Decision: “Okay, Let’s Talk”

Google Watch: Yahoo Board to Meet on Microhoo?!?!

Michal Lev-Ram / Techland: What Google can do to help Yahoo

Todd Bishop / Todd Bishop’s Microsoft Blog: Latest from Ballmer on Microsoft’s Yahoo bid

Loren Baker / Search Engine Journal: Yahoo Microsoft Decision Happening Today?

Larry Dignan / Between the Lines: Microsoft-Yahoo: The end game nears; Was there an Amazon-Yahoo deal in the works?

Kyle Monson / AppScout: Wikipedia Entry of the Day: Five Steps from Jerry Yang

John Gruber / Daring Fireball: Devil’s Advocate — So, all joking aside, there seems …

Kip Kniskern / LiveSide: MSFT-YHOO: Yahoo to decide its fate today?

Eric Zeman / InformationWeek Weblog: Yahoo To Answer Microsoft Today? Google Waits With Bated Breath

Bob Caswell / TechConsumer: What’s Your Google / Microsoft / Yahoo Usage Breakdown?

Electronista: MS/Yahoo deal to be settled today?

Jon / p2pnet: Yahoo’s last day as Yahoo? — Freedom:- Today is the day for Yahoo.

Financial Times: Softbank says Yahoo Japan holding will not be sold

Jeff / Venture Chronicles: Yahoo Board To Determine Fate Of Company Today

Mary Jo Foley / All about Microsoft: What is it about Microsoft that Yahoo most hates?

John Paczkowski / Digital Daily: Welcome to Microsoft — A popular misconception has it that Yahoo …

deal architect: Microsoft-Yahoo! update — Mike Arrington at TechCruch believes …

The Mac Observer: Yahoo May Reply to MS Bid on Friday

Nicholas Carlson / Valleywag: Yahoo board to decide on Microsoft’s offer today

MG Siegler / ParisLemon: WWY! D? What Will Yahoo! Do?

Eric Savitz / Tech Trader Daily: Yahoo Board Reportedly To Meet On Microsoft Bid Today

Greg Sterling / Screenwerk: A Micro-Hoo Decision Coming Soon

Kevin Newcomb / Search Engine Watch Blog: Decision Time for Yahoo? — According to Michael Arrington …

Zef Hemel: Jerry Yang Letter to Yahoo! Employees

Ashkan Karbasfrooshan / HipMojo.com: Yahoo!’s Hail Marry: Softbank’s Masayoshi Son?

Yahoo! Finance: D-Day for Yahoo — Is today the day that Yahoo will capitulate …

Rich Miller / Data Center Knowledge: Yahoo Board May Make Decision Today

Dan Primack / PE HUB: peHUB First Read — Some links to kick off your Friday:

Jay Greene / Business Week: Will Yahoo! Feel the Love?

Arik Hesseldahl / Business Week:

An Open Letter to Steve Ballmer — I know you want to make your mark on Microsoft, but you should stop trying to be all things to all people. Take a tip on focus from that other Steve — Dear Steve, — Let’s talk over this Yahoo! (YHOO) thing before you move ahead. It’s a profoundly bad idea.

Discussion: Valleywag and The Mac Observer

–

Discussion:

Owen Thomas / Valleywag: An open letter to Steve Ballmer (that he actually might read)

The Mac Observer: BW: Steve Ballmer Should Focus — Like the Other Steve

New York Post:

YAHOO! PRICE TALKS — HOLDERS SQUEEZE M’SOFT — Yahoo!’s largest investor met yesterday with Microsoft boss Steve Ballmer and other executives in an effort to gauge whether the software giant is willing to increase its already sweet $44.6 billion takeover offer, The Post has learned.

Discussion: WebProNews, Yahoo! Finance and Mashable!

–

Discussion:

Jason Lee Miller / WebProNews: Yahoo Decision Could Come Today

Joseph Weisenthal / Yahoo! Finance: MSFT-YHOO: Hasty House Hearing Delayed; Board Meeting?

Adam Ostrow / Mashable!: Yahoo’s Top Investor to Microsoft: Sweeten the Deal

Erick Schonfeld / TechCrunch:

A Radical Option For Yahoo: Out-Open Google — Yahoo is between a rock and Google. As Yahoo’s board decides today whether or not to accept Microsoft’s $44.6 billion offer to buy the company, we’ve argued that it really only has two choices: accept the inevitable and go with Microsoft, or outsource search to Google.

Discussion: VentureBeat and Silicon Alley Insider

–

Discussion:

MG Siegler / VentureBeat: All quiet on the Yahoo! front, time for alternative ideas

Henry Blodget / Silicon Alley Insider: Yahoo Board May Decide on Microsoft Today

New York Times:

Is It Too Late for Yahoo? — SAN FRANCISCO — One of the first questions that Jerry Yang and his top lieutenants pondered after he became chief executive of Yahoo last summer was whether the company could remain independent. They quickly answered yes. — But Mr. Yang, who founded Yahoo along …