Microsoft has put in a £22.5bn bid for search
engineYahoo.
Microsoft said the planned acquisition would create a more
competitive company that would be able to provide better choice and
innovation for customers and partners. The software giant hopes the
acquisition will help it compete with Google in the online
advertising market and deliver video and high-value internet
content.
The proposed acquisition represents a sizeable chunk of
Microsoft's $55bn (£30bn) annual turnover. It could ultimately
result in the company shifting its focus from business
infrastructure based on Windows to an online search engine and web
communities financed by internet advertising.
"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," said Steve Ballmer, chief executive
officer of Microsoft.
Ray Ozzie, chief software architect at Microsoft, said Yahoo had
played a significant role in developing the internet by building
compelling, high-scale services and infrastructure.
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