As it stands now, a deal between Microsoft and Yahoo! would up the combined companies’ share of the all-important search advertising market to 27 percent against Google’s 65 percent. It would also narrow the gap in overall online ads with Google to just 13 percent.
More importantly, a deal would create what one source described as “the dominant force on the Internet” in terms of eyeballs. That’s an important consideration as more and more content flows online – as the equations goes, eyeballs equal advertising.
Microsoft and Yahoo! also feature complimentary offerings on the content side, with MSN drawing an older audience with its news focus. By contrast, Yahoo! attracts a younger demographic with its entertainment coverage. NY Post
But even in the perfect world scenario I don’t think they would be able to surpass Google in search anytime in the near future. With that being said, that’s the perfect world scenario, you are talking about two very ego driven companies that both just spent a great deal of time and money building search applications to compete with Google (Microsoft’s live.com and AdCenter; Yahoo’s Project Panama). They also used to work together (Microsoft used Yahoo’s ad platform) and that got scrapped. So…. 10e20
So, what would be so great, or so bad if Yahoo and Microsoft were to merge or at least cooperate to address concerns with the growing threat by Google to all other engines and ad platforms?
Competition is the thing that Microsoft has not had to directly face for some time, and Yahoo knows what it feels like to be on top, but both have not been able to touch Google in the department of search and search driven revenue. As Google looks to other areas, like radio, television and newspapers, to generate additional revenue streams, this might be the optimal time for these two tech giants to seize an opportunity (that may or may not exist). The only thing that I can see, outside looking in, is that Google has never really been tested in their core competency, search. This could expose weaknesses that might be there, but I don’t see that either Yahoo or MSN could accomplish this independently.
I know that the dust has settled, for now at least, but there could be something there today that might never be there again (an opportunity)!
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Thanks for the link Pitfall – it would sure be interesting…
No problem Chris. This is a topic that I have been wanting to post about since the storm of debate. You made some great points and deserved it!
2 wrongs don’t make a right!
Eric, I wouldn’t go as far as to say that both are wrong… but that they both could be more right.