TECHNOLOGY TIPS - MICROSOFT, YAHOO, GOOGLE
CAN WE TALK? MICRO-HOO, SERIOUSLY?
So let's discuss this latest and greatest event in Microsoft history. And let's face it, this is all about Microsoft.
Microsoft has stated in no uncertain terms that they want to purchase Yahoo. Specifically, they are making a play for the search engine capabilities that Yahoo has.
The folks at Google are claiming they will come to the rescue of Yahoo.
So let's break this down. Microsoft wants to be a major player in the search engine game, create one platform for back-end use and gain market share. They were in talks with Yahoo for some time. The talks stopped and then Microsoft decided they wanted to purchase Yahoo. The purchase price is $45 billion; Yahoo's current value on the stock market $37 billion. Yahoo sent out a press release titled, Yahoo! Board of Directors to Evaluate Unsolicited Proposal From Microsoft. Microsoft executives are using the HP-Compaq merger as the basis for making this purchase a success.
Google Senior VP, David Drummond, has laid down the gauntlet with two very scathing comments. First he asked, "Could a combination of the two take advantage of a PC software monopoly to unfairly limit the ability of consumers to freely access competitors' e-mail, IM and web-based services?" Secondly he states, "This is about more than simply a financial transaction, one company taking over another. It's about preserving the underlying principles of the Internet: openness and innovation."
And so the drama continues to unravel. The reality is that Microsoft has created an amazing amount of innovation in IT; Yahoo has the number 2 search engine; and Google does not want to lose it's number 1 search engine spot. So Google may be just like Microsoft when it comes to losing the number 1 ranking.
As for me, I'm going to make some popcorn and enjoy the show. Regardless of what happens, Yahoo comes out a winner to their shareholders. Google or Microsoft becomes the major player in search engines and the Internet is still functioning for me to use.
HAVE AN OPINION ON THIS LATEST NEWS? Let me know.
CATHY MALLERS & DEAN'S TEAM CHICAGO
