microsoft yahoo!

[cossieboy]

do you think microsoft are going to succesfully buy yahoo, and do u think it would be good

[jno]

depends who you are. If you have Yahoo shares, you'll be quids in. Microsoft is trying to compete with Google, so they're buying another company with search facility but one that has been in financial difficulties. There's a useful analysis here:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7222199.st m

[fo3nix]

Both companies are in trouble now, and they will stay to be once purchased (if it goes ahead).

It's great for Google because Microsoft will likely throw a load of cash at it, and get nowhere. Also, there are some great employees who work for Yahoo that may not want to work for Microsoft. Some of these may go to Google.

Yahoo have long been a supporter of free software projects and use software like freeBSD on their servers. If Microsoft gets its grubby hands on Yahoo, they may well start converting everything to .NET technologies and their own server operating systems.

I hope they don't do anything to del.icio.us or Flickr (both owned by Yahoo).

[rojash]

Micorosoft has no history of buying failing firms and turning them round. I suspect that all that will happen is eventually, Yahoo and MS combine will end up with a user-base roughly equivalent to the current MS one, and that the ultimate beneficiary will be Google.

[vehelpfulguy]

>Both companies are in trouble now,

How do you work this out ?

According to the web

Microsoft Revenue: Sales in the fiscal second quarter gained 30% to $16.4 billion.

[rojash]

"Both companies are in trouble now, "

I think fo3nix is referring to their search-engine and on-line advertising businesses, which are steadily losing share.

MS will certainly be in MORE trouble if they can't turn themselves into a successful web-focused business in a short time.

[ACtheTROLL]

I think that anything microsoft can do to increase their stranglehold, influence and control of our world has got to be a good thing

[fo3nix]

Yea I should have clarified myself.

Financially, Microsoft is still rolling money.

In terms of industry respect and future prospects for the web, Microsoft is rolling in something else entirely.