A new report has emerged that executives of Microsoft are discussing with private equity firms interested in buying Yahoo to tell them that the software company is willing to lend significant financial backing to their efforts.
The software giant's initiative does not mean that it is now interested in buying the ailing internet search company. It does mean however, that whatever hands Yahoo falls into, it would be friendly to the software giant.
But Microsoft's action belies the fact that it couldn't wiggle itself out of its 10-year partnership with the internet search company.
Exactly five years ago, Microsoft officially ended its plan to buy the Sunnyvale, CA-based company for $47.5 billion. In retrospect, losing the battle to acquire the search giant proved to be the best thing that happened with the software developer.
At that time, Yahoo turned down the unsolicited acquisition offer of the software company. If the internet search company took the offer, its shareholders could have netted S33 per share. For Yahoo's stockholders who stayed loyal, the past five years have been miserable in terms of monetary returns.
This could have been the biggest financial decision for the Redmond, WA-based company if its deal five years with internet search giant had been consummated. As it is, it was not only able to save $47.5 billion dollars, but a lot more.
The goal of a Microsoft-Yahoo merger is to compete with Google in online search and advertising. That deal would have been the culminating business acquisition spree of the software company wherein it acquired eight advertising and search centered companies.
Five years ago, Steve Balmer, CEO in an interview boasted of the company's confidence in advertising. However, drastic changes were already brewing which eventually scuttled the merger between the two companies.
In a complete change of direction, Microsoft recently spent over a billion dollars to acquire a domain replete with all kinds of animated GIFs including naughty pictures.
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