Yahoo admits anticompetitive partnership?

On June 8, we met with Yahoo in San Jose, and Jerry Yang, the CEO of Yahoo, looked across he table, looked us in the eye and said, “Look, the search market today is basically a bipolar market.” He said, “On one pole there’s Google, and on the other pole there are Yahoo and Microsoft both competing with Google.” He said, “If we do this deal with Google, Yahoo will become part of Google’s pole.” And Microsoft, he said, would not be strong enough in this market to be a pole of its own.

- Microsoft general counsel Brad Smith in a hearing with the Senate antitrust committee

(LA Times “Microsoft: Yahoo’s Yang admitted a Google ad deal would hurt competition”)

Google antitrust hearings

Too in-depth for me to try to analyze for a post, here’s an article by TechCrunch on the hearings today. Of course, Microsoft (who has dealt with its fair share of antitrust complaints on the opposite side), is the plaintiff. Microsoft says the deal will lead to higher prices for advertisers, fewer options, and privacy issues. Google responds that consumers will see better and and click-throughs will improve.

new developments

Yahoo rejected another proposed Microsoft buyout of their search propreties. According to the release, Yahoo believe their partnership with Google is better for them and that the forced replacement of the board and executives is “absurd and irresponsible.”

(TechCrunch “New Microsoft Offer, Quickly Rejected”)

Of course, Microsoft then released a statement saying they made their offer at the request of Yahoo Chairman Roy Bostock. Curious.

(TechCrunch “Microsoft Now Says Yahoo Came Crawling To Them (Again)”)

love triangle continued…

If industry whisperings are to be believed, Yahoo! and Microsoft are once again discussing some form of collaboration. Speculations range from a non-acquisition partnership to a buyout.

(Source: MediaPost “Reports: Yahoo-Microsoft Talks Restart”)