Microsoft Withdraws Proposal to Acquire Yahoo! | The Coffeehouse

Vasudev

Microsoft Withdraws Proposal to Acquire Yahoo!

"Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) today announced that it has withdrawn its proposal to acquire Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO)............"

http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2008/may08/05-03letter.mspx

So what are your thoughts? Is it a good thing or MS will get back after Yahoo Prices falls ?

(If anybody has already posted this, please ignore my post, I couldn't find from the search. But was surprised such an important announcement not yet discussed here ?)

wisemx
Live it

You beat me to it, was just going to post the same news. Big Smile

http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2008/may08/05-03letter.mspx?rss_fdn=Press%20Releases

W3bbo
The Master of Baiters

Vasudev wrote:
So what are your thoughts? Is it a good thing or MS will get back after Yahoo Prices falls ?

Resoundingly good thing. It means Flickr remains untainted.

phreaks

It will be interesting to see what happens now.

If Yahoo shares drop to pre-MS offer levels, investors will want heads to roll.

ZippyV
Fired Up

Yahoo would have been a poison pill for Microsoft so I think this news is a good thing.

Zeo
Channel 9 :)

Emergency Gillmor Gang 800-704-9804 code to listen 714583#

10pm EST Big Smile

wisemx
Live it

Yahoo admits it's not over yet:
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080503/microsoft_yahoo.html?.v=3

Will take more than Google to save it. Wink

ElucidWeb

Its bad news for yahoo, they are financial morons, the investors were banking on this deal going through which would have shot their stock through the roof despite what all the techies think.

In my techie opinion however I think the deal would have sucked, I have lost all hope in Microsoft taking another companies ideas and making them better. It seems like Microsoft doesn't innovate as much as you think...

For example just to name a few
VirtualPC (Connectix, Kidaro)
SQL Server (Sybase)
Frontpage (Netcarta)
ActiveX (Calusa Software)
MSN Messenger (Flash Communications)
Windows Live ID (Firefly Networks)
Microsoft Outlook (Jump Networks)
MSN (Driveoff.com)
Hotmail (Hotmail.com)

just a few....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_companies_acquired_by_Microsoft_Corporation

Wikipedia article for all of "Microsofts" innovations, and trust me I am a massive Microsoft guy but lately I am losing faith. Their products have just been dissapointing, Server 2008 has been the only thing they released thats worthwhile in nearly 7 years!

phreaks

ElucidWeb wrote:
Its bad news for yahoo, they are financial morons, the investors were banking on this deal going through which would have shot their stock through the roof despite what all the techies think.

In my techie opinion however I think the deal would have sucked, I have lost all hope in Microsoft taking another companies ideas and making them better. It seems like Microsoft doesn't innovate as much as you think...

For example just to name a few
VirtualPC (Connectix, Kidaro)
SQL Server (Sybase)
Frontpage (Netcarta)
ActiveX (Calusa Software)
MSN Messenger (Flash Communications)
Windows Live ID (Firefly Networks)
Microsoft Outlook (Jump Networks)
MSN (Driveoff.com)
Hotmail (Hotmail.com)

just a few....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_companies_acquired_by_Microsoft_Corporation

Wikipedia article for all of "Microsofts" innovations, and trust me I am a massive Microsoft guy but lately I am losing faith. Their products have just been dissapointing, Server 2008 has been the only thing they released thats worthwhile in nearly 7 years!

I don't know much about the other products, so I can't discuss them, but are you really implying that MS didn't "Innovate the Hell" out of the Sybase engine?

Apparently, you have never used Sybase...

brian.shapiro
things go on as always

Software companies do buyouts all the time, not because they can't develop their own code, because they dont want to use their own time and resources when a solution exists. Google, Apple, etc do this too, not just Microsoft. Apple also hires independent designers and brings them in the company, just like Microsoft.

Trying to make Microsoft special in this regard is silly

Vasudev

Yahoo! Issues Statement in Response to Microsoft

phreaks

I like these: (read in order)

http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2008/05/02/ap4964945.html

http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9935219-7.html

Dovella
Go Microsoft !!!!!!!

nasdaq

Last Sale Change Net %
Yahoo 1,58$ - 700 %

Vasudev

Come Monday, Yahoo will be going Down the stocks!!

staceyw
Before C# there was darkness...

ElucidWeb wrote:
Its bad news for yahoo, they are financial morons, the investors were banking on this deal going through which would have shot their stock through the roof despite what all the techies think.

In my techie opinion however I think the deal would have sucked, I have lost all hope in Microsoft taking another companies ideas and making them better. It seems like Microsoft doesn't innovate as much as you think...

For example just to name a few
VirtualPC (Connectix, Kidaro)
SQL Server (Sybase)
Frontpage (Netcarta)
ActiveX (Calusa Software)
MSN Messenger (Flash Communications)
Windows Live ID (Firefly Networks)
Microsoft Outlook (Jump Networks)
MSN (Driveoff.com)
Hotmail (Hotmail.com)

just a few....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_companies_acquired_by_Microsoft_Corporation

Wikipedia article for all of "Microsofts" innovations, and trust me I am a massive Microsoft guy but lately I am losing faith. Their products have just been dissapointing, Server 2008 has been the only thing they released thats worthwhile in nearly 7 years!

You can't read some stuff in black and white and paint it that all over those products. I used Outlook's father (MS Mail - now that product sucked) and all versions of Outlook after. I can tell you it was not some buyout. It was 10+ years of blood and sweet (and some trial and error) to get the product you see today. They may have aquired some calender tech...not a big deal. Outlook is MS's product home grown. SQL Server has been rewritten from scratch twice since Sybase days. Piece bought here and there does not make a production product - far from it. Moreover, some of these buyouts where more to get people and rid competition (and reduce market confusion) then to actually use the code. It is much more complex then bullet points in a wiki. Likewise, Driveoff.com was a Car Shopping *piece; Not all of MSN. That would be like saying the space shuttle was invented by Goodyear because NASA bought the wheels. And, IMO, Netcarta and have FP back.

staceyw
Before C# there was darkness...

I think MS was trying to do Yahoo a favor, and they did not get it. I am glad they did not get stuck with that old dog.

Ray6

Have to agree with most of the folk here. Yahoo gambled, and they lost.

Clearly, MS didn't want them as much as they'd hoped.

Cybermagellan
Live for nothing, or die for everything

What's funny is, Ballmer is insinuating that Yang is sabotaging Yahoo to stop a Microsoft merger...

"Our discussions with you have led us to conclude that, in the interim, you would take steps that would make Yahoo undesirable as an acquisition,"

And Yang is acting like Yahoo! was doing just fine before Microsoft...

"I am incredibly proud of the way our team has come together over the last three months. This process has underscored our unique and valuable strategic position. With the distraction of Microsoft's unsolicited proposal now behind us, we will be able to focus all of our energies on executing the most important transition in our history so that we can maximize our potential to the benefit of our shareholders, employees, partners and users."

Something tells me on Monday morning after the bell, Yang will be on the phone with Steve....awww, comon we were just kidding.

harlock123
Tall, Dark, and Gruesome

ElucidWeb wrote:

For example just to name a few
VirtualPC (Connectix, Kidaro)
SQL Server (Sybase)
Frontpage (Netcarta)
ActiveX (Calusa Software)
MSN Messenger (Flash Communications)
Windows Live ID (Firefly Networks)
Microsoft Outlook (Jump Networks)
MSN (Driveoff.com)
Hotmail (Hotmail.com)

Who did they buy Visual Studio from?
Or .Net technologies in general?
or C# for that matter...

rdaJay
Ya best look out when Omar come callin', yo.

What I am thinking about are the (at least) 2 groups at Yahoo... Each one has a primary focus.

1) Yes! We're not being taken over by teh Evil Empire! We'll still be open Source!

2) Uh, how much money did we just lose? That's not good, is it?

Any other groups out there you might know about?

Anyone thing Heads will roll at Yahoo's board?

Anyone think Microsoft will come back later?

SharePoint Guy
Bring it on!

Dovella wrote:

nasdaq

Last Sale Change Net %
Yahoo 1,58$ - 700 %

Then how do you explain this? Perplexed

http://quotes.nasdaq.com/quote.dll?page=multi&mode=stock&symbol=YHOO

evildictaitor
if( !succeed( try() ) ) { while(true) try(); }

Dovella wrote:

nasdaq

Last Sale Change Net %
Yahoo 1,58$ - 700 %

The statement was issued on Saturday when NASDAQ wasn't trading. You won't see a change in price until monday.

Besides which, you should never quote last sale - and on Friday YHOO was up 6.92%.

Maddus Mattus
Do, or do not. There is no try. - Yoda

harlock123 wrote:
Who did they buy Visual Studio from?
Or .Net technologies in general?
or C# for that matter...

Didnt they hire the Delphi Lead Architect to do that?

Nevertheless,.. I love .Net Smiley

If I wasnt allready married, I would marry .Net,.. seriously Cool

eagle

On the other side of the world it's already Monday morning and Brokers who accumulated YHOO shares at the behest of Microsoft are dumping them. They may begin to buy them back if YHOO returnes to under $20 a share, but Steve Ballmer really should be focused on MSFT shareholder value.

evildictaitor
if( !succeed( try() ) ) { while(true) try(); }

Yahoo traded at $19 a share before the takeover, and is currently at $28ish, so I'd be very surprised if they lost a third of their value back to $20. I suspect it'll drop straight to $24.

Bear in mind that the LSE is closed today, and so you should wait until they open on Tuesday for a more accurate figure.