In Your Facebook, Yahoo
by John Paczkowski
Posted on May 7, 2008 at 10:54 AM PT
Good thing so rarely a correlation exists between a company’s public announcements and its corporate actions. Otherwise, it might be tough to parse Microsoft’s recent comments about future acquisitions in light of some rumors floating around Silicon Valley today.
While touring Japan this week, company Chairman Bill Gates told a news conference that Microsoft (MSFT) isn’t likely to pursue other deals following its withdrawal of its ill-starred takeover bid for Yahoo (YHOO). Said Gates, “Now at this point Microsoft is focused on its independent strategy.”
Windows Live General Manager Brian Hall echoed that sentiment at an analyst meeting yesterday: “We’ve withdrawn the offer and moved on, and now are focused on how we grow as fast as possible organically.”
Seems this whole Yahoo debacle has put Microsoft off acquisitions entirely. Or has it? As first reported by BoomTown’s Kara Swisher, Microsoft recently contacted Facebook to gauge the Internet company’s willingness to sell it the 98.4% of the company that it doesn’t yet own. No word on what Facebook’s reply was, although CEO Mark Zuckerberg has long said he’s not interested in selling the company. And even if he were, Facebook doesn’t exactly solve the problems that Yahoo would have. It’s hardly a viable source of online advertising …
