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Google involved in possible Yahoo takeover

by Steven Williamson on 24 October 2011, 11:38

Tags: Google (NASDAQ:GOOG), Yahoo! (NASDAQ:YHOO)

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Google may be looking to gain an even bigger share of the Internet search market by playing a role in the acquisition of Yahoo!

Bloomberg reports that Google is currently in talks with a number of private equity firms and may fund a potential takeover, which could see a bidding war with Microsoft who has also expressed an interest in the struggling media agency.

Due to potential problems with regulations, Google, who already has a significant 65 per cent share in this particular sector, is not likely to bid directly for Yahoo!, who currently own a 14.7 per cent share in the market. However, a shadow bid would allow Google to gain even further ground over Microsoft, who has already formed an alliance with Yahoo! with its Bing search engine.

Despite a downturn in Yahoo’s fortunes over the past few years, which culminated with the sacking of CEO Carol Bartz in September, the company is still valued at $20bn and pulls in monthly audience figures of almost 700 million unique visitors.

Neither Microsoft nor Google, it seems, are interested in running Yahoo! directly, but by providing the financial backing both companies would be able to push forward with plans to further roll-out their communication and social-networking services, Skype and Google+.

Google is currently under review by the US Federal Trade Commission about its business practices and to ascertain whether it's a monopoly. Greg Sterling from Opus Research in San Francisco told Bloomberg: "If competition dissipates or diminishes, then the hand of regulators is strengthened. If competition is diminished or marginalised, then all the arguments about Google being a monopoly ring more true."

Google and Microsoft have both declined to comment on the Yahoo! bid.


HEXUS Forums :: 7 Comments

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What the heck are Google thinking? If they were in danger of being branded “monopoly” before then buying Yahoo will sure as heck make that brand stick. Not that I'd regard Yahoo as much of a catch, can't remember the last time I willingly used it.

Unless - of course - Google intends to buy Yahoo so they can kill it, and also prevent MS getting it. ;)
crossy
Unless - of course - Google intends to buy Yahoo so they can kill it, and also prevent MS getting it. ;)

Tesco used to buy old or rent out large empty stores in towns to stop other supermarkets moving into them. They then would sell the buildings to businesses that don't rival them at cheap prices.

I always seem to stumble upon Yahoo Answers when looking for answers about things.
Brewster0101
Tesco used to buy old or rent out large empty stores in towns to stop other supermarkets moving into them. They then would sell the buildings to businesses that don't rival them at cheap prices.

Tesco also got bitchslapped a few years back by the competition commission for doing this. Probably not the best example (or maybe it is, I somehow can't see the regulators letting the world's largest search company buy the world's second largest search company…).
Ahhh the irony. I was working at Yahoo when they briefly considered buying a new startup called Google. “It'll never catch on…..”
Never going to happen