Maybe, just maybe, the recent "losses" to Google in acquiring DoubleClick and YouTube were Microsoft's way of goading Google into acquiring those companies so that Microsoft could more easily acquire Yahoo without any anti-trust problems. Possible?

$50 billion!!

Interesting thought on the potential anti-anti-trust step, but I doubt Microsoft would be that many moves ahead. Schmidt and Co probably took that into consideration.

In the years that it would take Microsoft and Yahoo to effectively merge, Google could continue to focus on execution and pull even farther ahead.

I think this would be a good long term move.

50 Billion!!!! That's 7 months of the Iraq War!!!!

Another attempt at Microsoft to regain the throne.
They already have MSN and it's a losing venture.
Google is king and will be for quite awhile.

kmcolo mused out of context:

50 Billion!!!! That's 7 months of the Iraq War!!!!

$50 Billion!!!! That's $15+ Million in the pocket of each 9/11 victim!!!!

Hard to believe they'll buy Yahoo, unless they simply want to kill it, which would be a pretty steep price to pay even for them.

Google is king and will be for quite awhile.

You know, if they just stirp MSN out of all the html and make it a plain and simple white page with just a search bar.

There's something about the color white which attracts people on the web.

$50 Billion!!!! That's $15+ Million in the pocket of each 9/11 victim!!!!

Huh?? Are you connecting 911 with Iraq again? You know, we're talking about Google, perhaps a last word in the dictionary to be attached to war in Iraq.

My fault!

@arifsali, I think you mean to quote kmocolo, there...

I personally don't think this is a very good idea. Microsoft has a competitor to almost every Yahoo! product. It'll be competing with itself. Not to mention Yahoo! users have fierce brand loyalty, so if Balmer or anyone tries to incorporate it, it'll be counter-productive.

The best way to manage it would be to spin-off Yahoo! as a subsidary, kind of like what Google did with YouTube.

Sohil, good to see you again!

I've read a similar sentiment in one of computer publications... seems like MS is buying nothing more than brand and hoping to attract loyalists to Yahoo over to MS. Of course if they leave it alone, then it may not lose its appeal and this way all of the ad revenue etc. will be going to MS, so there's certainly some logic there. However, if loyalists happen to also be anti-MS crowd - they'll likely turn... and there's only one place to turn... so in the end the big winner might be good old Google again.

Good to see you too RecordSage, what publication was this?

Ya, Microsoft has to be real careful in making this purchase.

I can't recall, sohil (once I said it, I understand how Clinton felt - seriously though I read too many online & offline pubs to remember... plus the age... kind of filter what's relevant (i.e. what's stated) and what's not so relevant (i.e. where it was stated) to keep up with everything. Sorry.