Yicrosoft Directory

Yicrosoft Directory News: Microsoft Buys Tellme

2008-03-02T11:47:00.000-08:00

The AP published a story on Friday about the reportedly happy integration of one of Microsoft's acquired companies, Tellme, bought for about $800 million 10 months ago. Or maybe it is more accurate to say the happy NOT integration. Tellme makes voice automation software used by directory assistance and other voice-controlled services.

Yicrosoft Directory News: Yahoo Plans To Launch 'Digg' Clone

2008-02-26T21:43:00.000-08:00

On Tuesday, Yahoo plans to introduce a service called Buzz that relies on users to help it compile the most popular articles from around the Web. Yahoo plans to include some of those on its front page, hoping to attract more users and turn it into a hub for driving traffic to other publishers.

Story continued here

Source: nwtimes.com

Yahoo Sued For Not Taking Microsoft's (Yicrosoft Directory) Offer

2008-02-24T14:57:00.000-08:00

DOVER, Del. (AP) — Two Detroit pension funds have sued Yahoo Inc. and its board of directors, saying they breached their duties to shareholders in trying to thwart a takeover by Microsoft Corp.

The lawsuit was filed in Delaware Chancery Court on Thursday by lawyers representing Detroit's police and fire retirement system and general retirement system, as well as "all other similarly situated public shareholders."

Article is continued here

Source: google.com

Kevin Johnson's Official Email To "Yicrosoft Directory"

2008-02-22T19:38:00.000-08:00

Yicrosoft Directory has found the exclusive email that Kevin Johnson sent on Feb 22nd 2008 concerning Yicrosoft Directory.

From: Kevin Johnson
Sent: Friday, February 22, 2008 12:48 PM
To: Platforms & Services Division
Subject: Update on Yahoo! Proposal

I want to provide all employees in the Platforms & Services Division with an update on our February 1 proposal to combine with Yahoo!, and answer a few common questions that have been asked.

As we’ve discussed, the online advertising industry is growing rapidly and is expected to be an $80B industry by 2010. We believe our proposal is a compelling one and that the combination of Yahoo! and Microsoft creates a more credible alternative to an increasingly dominant player in the advertising industry. We are committed to building great services for consumers while delivering great value to advertisers and publishers. We have been very thoughtful about this combination, and are excited about what our two companies can do together to collectively target growth opportunities in online services, search, and advertising.

It is important to remember that, while we have made what we believe to be a very compelling proposal for Yahoo! shareholders and employees, we do not have an agreement in place with Yahoo! at this time. While Yahoo!’s Board and management consider our proposal, let me share a perspective on the process going forward:

While Yahoo! has issued a press release rejecting our proposal, we continue to believe we have a full and fair proposal on the table. We look forward to a constructive dialogue with Yahoo!’s Board, management, shareholders, and employees on the value of this combination and its strategic and financial merits.

Click here to read the whole email!

Yicrosoft Directory Now Appears Likely!

2008-02-20T22:36:00.001-08:00

YICROSOFT DIRECTORY BREAKING NEWS: Microsoft MSFT can use a proxy fight to replace Yahoo (NASDAQ:YHOO) YHOO board members in an effort to push through its previously rejected bid to acquire the company, but analysts expect the two sides will eventually reach an agreement much sooner -- and on far friendlier terms.

Yicrosoft Directory "proxy fight"

2008-02-19T21:20:00.000-08:00

Microsoft Corp. plans to intensify its pursuit of Yahoo Inc. this week when it authorizes a proxy fight to oust Yahoo's board, meaning the 19-day-old acquisition attempt will soon turn a darker shade of ugly, according to The New York Times.

Article continued here

Source: computerworld.com

"Yicrosoft Directory"'s tensions rise... Yahoo aquires Maven Networks

2008-02-13T22:27:00.001-08:00

Yahoo acquires Maven Networks Inc. for $160 million.

Yahoo bought Maven Networks Inc. for about $160 million to expand its footprint in the fast-growing online video advertising market, one of the battlegrounds with Google Inc. and other rivals.

Yahoo declined to say whether it paid in cash or stock.

But on the other hand....

Analysts are still betting that Microsoft will succeed in its quest to buy Yahoo but expect the corporate mating dance to last a few more weeks. They predict that Microsoft eventually will increase its $31-a-share offer.

Click here to read the entire article

Source: latimes.com

Wait, I Spoke Too Soon. Yicrosoft Directory Turning In The Other Direction?

2008-02-12T23:44:00.000-08:00

Hey guys, thanks for coming to Yicrosoft Directory. If you'd like to be kept up to date to my blogs subscribe by email in the corner over there --->

Well, it looks like I spoke to soon. Yicrosoft Directory may NOT be dead yet.

In the end, tens of billions of dollars are betting that Microsoft and Yahoo will find common ground somewhere between the $31 a share that Microsoft offered on Feb. 1 and $35 a share, which analysts believe Microsoft could afford to pay.

But still no one knows what the fate of Yahoo will be. Will it be Yicrosoft, or will it be something else?

Meanwhile Yahoo, which began laying off 1,000 employees this week, will continue scrambling for an alternative that would enable it to survive as an independent company. It is considering everything from outsourcing search advertising to Google to making its own bid for AOL.

For more theory, read the article below:
Source: mercurynews.com

Microsoft Responds To "Yicrosoft Directory"

2008-02-12T07:41:00.000-08:00

Microsoft describes "Yicrosoft Directory":

It is unfortunate that Yahoo! has not embraced our full and fair proposal to combine our companies. Based on conversations with stakeholders of both companies, we are confident that moving forward promptly to consummate a transaction is in the best interests of all parties.  We are offering shareholders superior value and the opportunity to participate in the upside of the combined company. The combination also offers an increasingly exciting set of solutions for consumers, publishers and advertisers while becoming better positioned to compete in the online services market.  A Microsoft-Yahoo! (Yicrosoft Directory) combination will create a more effective company that would provide greater value and service to our customers. Furthermore, the combination will create a more competitive marketplace by establishing a compelling number two competitor for Internet search and online advertising.  The Yahoo! response does not change our belief in the strategic and financial merits of our proposal. As we have said previously, Microsoft reserves the right to pursue all necessary steps to ensure that Yahoo!'s shareholders are provided with the opportunity to realize the value inherent in our proposal.

On February 1, 2008, Microsoft announced a proposal to acquire all the outstanding shares of Yahoo! common stock for per share consideration of $31 representing a total equity value of approximately $44.6 billion and a 62 percent premium above the closing price of Yahoo! common stock based on the closing prices of the stocks of both companies on Jan. 31, 2008, the last day of trading prior to Microsoft's announcement. Microsoft's proposal would allow the Yahoo! shareholders to elect to receive cash or a fixed number of shares of Microsoft common stock, with the total consideration payable to Yahoo! shareholders consisting of one-half cash and one-half Microsoft common stock.

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

This communication does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities or a solicitation of any vote or approval. This material is not a substitute for the prospectus/proxy statement Microsoft Corporation would file with the SEC if an agreement between Microsoft Corporation and Yahoo! Inc. is reached or any other documents which Microsoft Corporation may file with the SEC and send to Yahoo! shareholders in connection with the proposed transaction. INVESTORS AND SECURITY HOLDERS OF YAHOO! INC. ARE URGED TO READ ANY SUCH DOCUMENTS FILED WITH THE SEC CAREFULLY IN THEIR ENTIRETY WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROPOSED TRANSACTION.

Investors and security holders will be able to obtain free copies of any documents filed with the SEC by Microsoft Corporation through the web site maintained by the SEC at http://www.sec.gov. Free copies of any such documents can also be obtained by directing a request to Investor Relations Department, Microsoft Corporation, One Microsoft Way, Redmond, Washington 98052-6399.

Microsoft Corporation and its directors and executive officers and other persons may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies in respect of the proposed transaction. Information regarding Microsoft Corporation's directors and executive officers is available in its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended June 30, 2007, which was filed with the SEC on August 8, 2007, and its proxy statement for its 2007 annual meeting of shareholders, which was filed with the SEC on September 29, 2007. Other information regarding the participants in a proxy solicitation and a description of their direct and indirect interests, by security holdings or otherwise, will be contained in any proxy statement filed in connection with the proposed transaction.

Statements in this release that are "forward-looking statements" are based on current expectations and assumptions that are subject to risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially because of factors such as Microsoft Corporation's ability to achieve the synergies and value creation contemplated by the proposed transaction, Microsoft Corporation's ability to promptly and effectively integrate the businesses of Yahoo! Inc. and Microsoft Corporation, the timing to consummate the proposed transaction and any necessary actions to obtain required regulatory approvals, and the diversion of management time on transaction-related issues. For further information regarding risks and uncertainties associated with Microsoft Corporation's business, please refer to the "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" and "Risk Factors" sections of Microsoft Corporation's SEC filings, including, but not limited to, its annual report on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, copies of which may be obtained by contacting Microsoft Corporation's Investor Relations department at (800) 285-7772 or at Microsoft Corporation's website at http://www.microsoft.com/msft.

All information in this communication is as of the date hereof. Microsoft Corporation undertakes no duty to update any forward-looking statement to conform the statement to actual results or changes in the company's expectations.

Source: biz.yahoo.com

I Think It's Safe To Say, 'Yicrosoft Directory Is Dead'

2008-02-10T17:56:00.000-08:00

Microsoft offered: $31 p/s
Yahoo wanted: $40 p/s

So... lets put it in bigger terms:

Microsoft offered: $41,540,000,000

Yahoo wanted: $57,200,000,000

That's a $15,660,000,000 difference!

Yicrosoft Directory is a bust

2008-02-10T11:01:00.000-08:00

A little bird told me that Yahoo & Google may have a possible alliance:
(click to enlarge)

Yicrosoft Directory to be Yoogle Directory?

2008-02-10T01:24:00.000-08:00

It seems as though Yahoo has gone the other way. An alliance with Google?

The rejection comes as Yahoo's board has been considering various other scenarios, including a search advertising partnership Google Inc.

Bad News For "Yicrosoft Directory"

2008-02-09T18:17:00.000-08:00

Yahoo! is this weekend poised to reject a $44.6bn takeover bid from Microsoft, a move which could spark a bitter battle for control of one of the world's leading internet firms.

Yahoo! is this weekend poised to reject a $44.6bn takeover bid from Microsoft
Yang: seeking Google alliance?

Board directors at Yahoo! have decided to reject the unsolicited offer, and are understood to be planning to outline their position to Microsoft in a letter tomorrow.

A formal rejection of Microsoft's bid could spark a renewed overture from Google to establish a formal alliance between itself and Yahoo! and may also encourage other potential counter-bidders.

A source close to the situation said Yahoo! felt Microsoft’s $31-a-share offer “massively undervalues” the internet company.. The source said that Yahoo!'s board believed Microsoft had opted to swoop now to take advantage of recent falls in Yahoo!'s share price, and was unlikely to consider any offer below $40 a share.

Microsoft's bid for Yahoo! represents the most brazen attempt yet by its chief executive, Steve Ballmer, to halt Google's runaway success in the global online search market. Google has a 66 per cent share of the global web search market, compared with Yahoo!'s 13 per cent and Microsoft's 4 per cent.

If Yahoo!, which is led by Jerry Yang, does formally reject the bid, Microsoft could be forced to go hostile and seek to oust the Yahoo! board, or to increase its offer price.

Google has publicly blasted Microsoft's bid for Yahoo!, describing it as a threat to internet users' access to rival instant messaging and e-mail accounts.

Source: telegraph.co.uk

More "Yicrosoft Directory" News

2008-02-07T16:14:00.000-08:00

THIS was the week for "Yicrosoft Directory" that seemed to confirm the new balance of power in the technology industry. Computing is moving online, away from the desktop—and away from Microsoft, the desktop-software leviathan, to Google, master of online search. "Yicrosoft Directory", Microsoft's determination not to lose the struggle became clear when it bid $44.6 billion in cash and shares for Yahoo!, an ailing internet giant (see article). If the deal goes ahead, it will reshape the technology industry and clear the way for a straight fight between Microsoft and Google for dominance in the internet era. But whether Microsoft's bid succeeds or fails, it changes how all three firms are perceived.

Yahoo!'s status as the also-ran that seemed poised to inherit the internet, but failed to keep up with the changing technological times, is cemented. Microsoft, which has never made an acquisition on anything like this scale, has in effect conceded that it cannot compete with Google on its own; its bid highlights its own weakness almost as much as Yahoo!'s. Meanwhile, Google's objections to the proposed deal on antitrust grounds—even though the combination of Microsoft and Yahoo! would still trail far behind it in both internet search and advertising—show that the firm has failed to grasp that it, not Microsoft, is now regarded as the industry's Goliath.

Microsoft is the larger company by market capitalisation, of course, being worth some $270 billion, compared with Google's $160 billion or so. But the software market in which Microsoft mainly operates offers far weaker growth prospects than the intertwined search-and-advertising market dominated by Google. The search giant's pre-eminence in these fields is not related to a proprietary technological lock-in (internet users can easily switch between search engines); its market share falls far short of the 90% that Microsoft boasts in desktop operating-systems and office-productivity software; and it is not a convicted monopolist. So to call Google the new Microsoft is, in many ways, unfair. But it is undeniably the company that other technology firms and media giants are now most scared of—including Microsoft itself. Google's growing market share in search, and hence its clout in online advertising, make it look unstoppable.
Searching for scale

What particularly worries Microsoft is the prospect that software will increasingly be delivered as an internet-based service, supported by advertising. Google already offers a few such services, and is venturing onto Microsoft's patch. Microsoft's counter-attack has failed to make headway. Despite repeated relaunches, its search engine has a worldwide market share of 2.9%, against Google's 62.4%. Microsoft's share of online advertising is equally puny. Hence its bid for Yahoo!, the number two in search and advertising.

The two talked about a merger or partnership in 2006 and 2007, but at the time Yahoo! still hoped that Panama, a new system for placing advertisements next to the results of internet searches, would enable it to catch Google. Panama has failed to live up to expectations, however, and Yahoo!'s latest results caused its share price to fall to a four-year low on January 30th. Microsoft duly pounced. Unless a rival bid emerges, which is unlikely, or Yahoo! tries to save itself from the beast of Redmond by outsourcing its search-and-advertising operations to Google, Microsoft seems likely to get its prize.

Just how anti-competitive would a Microsoft-Yahoo! merger be? It is true that the combined firm would dominate the markets for instant messaging and web-based e-mail, but neither is lucrative. In the markets that really matter—search and advertising—the Microsoft-Yahoo! combination would still trail far behind Google, which is hoping to extend its reach in advertising even further by buying DoubleClick. The danger remains that Microsoft will somehow exploit its desktop monopoly to push Google aside. But how, exactly? Microsoft is being closely monitored by regulators, and if there were any way for it to use its desktop monopoly against Google it would surely have done so by now. Buying Yahoo! does not help it in that respect—and the deal may well backfire anyway. Microsoft has never done a merger of this size, and the two companies have very different cultures: there could be an exodus of engineers to other firms, including Google.

From a regulator's point of view, there are two decisions to make. The immediate one—whether to let a Microsoft-Yahoo! tie-up go ahead—is simple enough: creating a more convincing counterweight to Google can only be good for competition. (By contrast, a tie-up between Google and Yahoo! would constitute a worrying concentration of power.) If Microsoft tries any of its old tricks, it should be punished. As for the longer-term question—what to do about Google?—the answer is essentially the same. Like Microsoft, Google has enormous power in its market, so regulatory vigilance is necessary. But so far nobody, despite much grumbling, has shown that Google is abusing that power. So leave Google alone too, and prepare for an epic battle between the two tech titans.

Microsoft-Yahoo to be YICROSOFT

2008-02-06T17:09:00.001-08:00

H O L D the phone!

Microsoft are reporting that they will be making a offer to purchase Yahoo for approx $44.6 billion in cash and stock.

This is not a joke, repeat, this is not a joke. It’s on the Microsoft site!

This is one of the most major stories that we have ever covered in the over six years we’ve been covering this area.

Microsoft buying stock at the proposed $31 per share gives a 62% premium on yesterday’s closing price.

Will they be Microhoo (very unlikely); Yahoosoft or our favourite when hearing this is Yicrosoft (Yike-ro-soft)?

The Microsoft senior staffer are falling over themselves to give their views.

Ray Ozzie, chief software architect at Microsoft, “Our lives, our businesses, and even our society have been progressively transformed by the Web, and Yahoo! has played a pioneering role by building compelling, high-scale services and infrastructure. The combination of these two great teams would enable us to jointly deliver a broad range of new experiences to our customers that neither of us would have achieved on our own.”

Kevin Johnson, president of the Platforms & Services Division , “The combined assets and strong services focus of these two companies will enable us to achieve scale economics while reaching R&D critical mass to deliver innovation breakthroughs. The industry will be well served by having more than one strong player, offering more value and real choice to advertisers, publishers and consumers.”

Steve Ballmer, chief executive officer of Microsoft, “We have great respect for Yahoo!, and together we can offer an increasingly exciting set of solutions for consumers, publishers and advertisers while becoming better positioned to compete in the online services market. We believe our combination will deliver superior value to our respective shareholders and better choice and innovation to our customers and industry partners.”

More when we get it.

Wow, wow, wow.

Yicrosoft Directory

2008-02-04T22:27:00.000-08:00

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