Microsoft waits for new Yahoo regime
Published 5/5/08
Does anyone really think that Microsoft has given up on acquiring Yahoo? I’ve seen too many bloggers and journalists acting as if Microsoft’s walking away is the same as Microsoft’s giving up.
C’mon, folks, think about it: Yahoo shareholders were already lighting their torches and sharpening their pitchforks when Yang and crew turned down Redmond.
By walking away, Microsoft is making it easier on itself. Yahoo shares are plummeting (as expected). The shareholders will revolt this time, and whatever new regime that comes into power at Yahoo will be much more amenable to a buyout.
Why should Microsoft increase its offer? It doesn’t need to spend any more — it just has to sit and wait.
gnomic says:
I’ve never understood the value of Yahoo. MS has almost every feature as Yahoo in their MSN.com website, and what they don’t have they could easily build. They simply don’t gain that much. I get why YHOO wants to stay independent - although its a losing strategy in the long run.
The game is going to resolve into 3 major players representing the 3 paradigms: Desktop-centric (MS), Web application-centric (Google), and distributed service/mesh/ “widgets” (TBD, but I’m betting a new player with a VM hypervisor core and a presentation layer will stake this turf out soon).
And Yahoo doesn’t fit any of these.