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Re: Microsoft Offers $44.6 Billion To Buy Yahoo

Posted: Mon Feb 04, 2008 3:40 am
by Kieran Huggins
califdon wrote:SEC = Securities and Exchange Commission. FCC = Federal Communications Commission, not involved with antitrust. But that's okay, I wouldn't expect a Canuk to know. :P
Yeah, we have Frank down at the government building. If he feels businesses are being naughty he sends them a scolding letter. If that fails someone pelts their offices with a watermelon. Fortunately it's never had to escalate beyond that.

Re: Microsoft Offers $44.6 Billion To Buy Yahoo

Posted: Mon Feb 04, 2008 4:04 am
by matthijs
Think the main problem will be microsoft's branding. I mean, the way it is this just comes across as "we can't do it on our own, let's just buy our competitor". Of course, with someone like balmer leading, you already have a big branding problem. I can already see him in the board room, throwing chairs across the room, screaming "just kill them, buy them out!"

Re: Microsoft Offers $44.6 Billion To Buy Yahoo

Posted: Mon Feb 04, 2008 11:04 am
by Maugrim_The_Reaper
Looks like Google are over the shock and considering options. They have about 8 months for the US to clear the anti-trust proceedings (12 or more maybe since the EU has way more stringent anti-trust examinations). The period between Yahoo! surrendering, and actually getting taken over, leaves some room for a Google response.

I think the worse part for me is that I almost like Yahoo. They are not perfect, but they do their thing and make an effort. Google should have partnered with them strategically long ago instead of letting them slide so far Microsoft could launch a seriously threatening hostile takeover...

Re: Microsoft Offers $44.6 Billion To Buy Yahoo

Posted: Mon Feb 04, 2008 12:24 pm
by matthijs
Yeah, Yahoo's YUI for example is pretty cool.

Re: Microsoft Offers $44.6 Billion To Buy Yahoo

Posted: Mon Feb 04, 2008 3:08 pm
by Kieran Huggins
I'll concede that Yahoo is a cool company with tons of great people and cool products... unfortunately (for them) they just don't trump the competition.

It's a tough space to compete in... Kudos for trying, and I'm glad they exist.

Re: Microsoft Offers $44.6 Billion To Buy Yahoo

Posted: Mon Feb 04, 2008 3:47 pm
by califdon
kieranhuggins wrote:Yeah, we have Frank down at the government building. If he feels businesses are being naughty he sends them a scolding letter. If that fails someone pelts their offices with a watermelon. Fortunately it's never had to escalate beyond that.
:rofl:
matthijs wrote:Think the main problem will be microsoft's branding. I mean, the way it is this just comes across as "we can't do it on our own, let's just buy our competitor".
Anybody remember Visual FoxPro??

Re: Microsoft Offers $44.6 Billion To Buy Yahoo

Posted: Mon Feb 04, 2008 4:00 pm
by RobertGonzalez
FTC (Federal Trade Commission) not the FCC (Federal Communications Commission). And if Google were looking at buying Yahoo there would be serious FTC intervention and the talk of antitrust everywhere.

But since Microsoft sucks at everything, especially search, and Yahoo is about as craptastic as warts on a skunks ass, no one really cares about that. #2 and #3 join to create a bigger #2 (and we all knew Microsoft was a big #2 anyway, right?) all the while Google continues to grow as the premier search and internet services company.

I just feel sorry for the sacked Y! employees and all those PHP core team members (including Rasmus) that might feel the pinch of this of it goes through.

Re: Microsoft Offers $44.6 Billion To Buy Yahoo

Posted: Mon Feb 04, 2008 4:03 pm
by Benjamin
This is a bad deal. Google will help Yahoo with alternatives.

Re: Microsoft Offers $44.6 Billion To Buy Yahoo

Posted: Tue Feb 05, 2008 12:25 pm
by Jenk
califdon wrote:Anybody remember Visual FoxPro??
Correction: Anything Microsoft have ever done.

Re: Microsoft Offers $44.6 Billion To Buy Yahoo

Posted: Thu Feb 07, 2008 6:12 am
by matthijs
Here's a funny post from daringfireball, the "Translation From PR-Speak to English of Selected Portions of Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang’s Company-Wide Memo Regarding the Microsoft Takeover Bid"
http://daringfireball.net/2008/02/yahoo_translation

Re: Microsoft Offers $44.6 Billion To Buy Yahoo

Posted: Thu Feb 07, 2008 10:15 am
by RobertGonzalez
That was a good one.

Re: Microsoft Offers $44.6 Billion To Buy Yahoo

Posted: Thu Feb 07, 2008 5:38 pm
by Benjamin
Everah wrote:That was a good one.
Yes it was.