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Monday, May 5, 2008 at 10:23 am
You can almost hear the Yahoos from YHOO as MSFT’s bid dropped away, along with about 20% of its market cap. Big credit, as is to be expected in any matter related to cyberspace, is given to GOOG, which reportedly acted in the background as a support against the Gates of Destruction. It is a great feeling indeed when an unwanted acquisitional incursion is thwarted. If one is inside a company under this kind of assault, the tension, resentment, anger and determination not to see one’s nation fall is quite intense. And when the Huns retreat from the battlements and head back to the barbarian highlands, it’s high-fives all round, definitely. And many thanks to those who helped repel the invader. And it’s only natural to let the friendly ally inside the castle — for conversation, celebration and maybe even a little synergistic planning. About 20 years ago, a corporation of which I am more than superficially aware also sustained an ongoing assault from a hated competitor. For a while, this ancient enterprise looked wobbly, doomed to fall before the barbarian invader from the South. Then a White Knight came along on a very tiny steed and, with great legerdemain and fiduciary savoir faire, sent the Dark Lord back to from whence he came. There was wassailing all around, and the friend was invited in to purchase a nice piece of the castle itself. Before long, he owned the whole thing, burned most of it to the ground and built a parking lot over its remains. It was left to subsequent owners of the place to put up an almost entirely new structure, which is probably for the best anyhow. Those old castles are hard to heat. This has nothing to do with whether all the Yahooing and Googling about Microsoft’s retreat is warranted. For now, I’m sure it is. But sometimes it pays to be careful just who you give the keys to the castle, even if they are the most truly awesome dudes in the land when the dragons are flying. Thank God that Microsoft backed off buying that turkey. Mt advice: dump yahoo while you still can, it’s long term is nowwhere, cause now it’s a 3 horse race. Posted By Jack Hammond Canada : May 5, 2008 1:17 pm
SHUT UP Posted By JIM HICKORY NC : May 5, 2008 2:07 pm
Lame column. If you have something to say, say it. Posted By tom, south pasadena, ca : May 5, 2008 3:33 pm
MSFT blew it, and so did YHOO…watch the vultures come in and swoop, quicker than anyone can say “google”… Posted By Grant, Cleveland, OH : May 5, 2008 3:47 pm
Wow, Jim. That’s a very enlightening argument. I couldn’t have put it better myself. You should come here more often and share your minimalist ideas with us. I’m no expert on these matters, but I was rooting for Microsoft on this one. I can understand the fear and frustration associated with an unwelcome advance by such a powerful suitor. In the the end, though, I think taken the money and taken a nice long vacation. Okay, now come the easy bets. Yahoo’s price falls. We already know that. In a few weeks or months, MS bids again, but at a lower price. This time, Yahoo accepts because next time the shareholders won’t be silly enough to turn down such a huge premium. Could Google make a run at the company? Maybe. I doubt that would pass regulatory muster, though. Even if it does, it won’t in Europe. Or perhaps China, with its trillions of dollars in reserves, makes a pass. But that would be unprecedented and, quite frankly, I don’t see Yahoo becoming a big enough bargain for their brand of low-ball. Posted By Ivan, Washington, DC : May 5, 2008 4:24 pm
Actually, I did say what I meant. I know a company. It got “saved” by a white knight who turned out to be far more destructive than the original acquisitor ever would have been. Is that complicated? I wasn’t rooting for anybody, but I’m not sure Yahoo served its investors as well as it might have by taking the money. Its management is still in power, though, and that says something for their determination, huh? Posted By Bing : May 5, 2008 4:39 pm
Let’s face it Bing, Yahoo out smarted it self, that is usually the case when people start to believe their own B.S. Posted By Jack Hammond Canada : May 5, 2008 6:06 pm
MS only shut off negotiations over the weekend. The board and shareholders may still be trying to figure out their next move. Also, they may not want to frighten the markets more by removing their senior management (team) while the stock price is still reeling from a declined premium take-over offer. The circumstances that you are describing, Bing, sound like the kind of folly that’s rife in the airline industry. This could even be the dealings of a Pickens or an Icahn. Posted By Ivan, Washington, DC : May 5, 2008 6:44 pm
I hope the little people at Yahoo aren’t cheering. The stock dropped. That means some of the little people are going to be catching pink slips soon. What’s good for the company isn’t necessarily good for the workers. Posted By Yadgyu, Harkeyville, TX : May 5, 2008 7:25 pm
Huns (YHOO) retreated to the highlands where resources can be very limited and embedded in non fertile territory. Toying with antitrust regulations and flirting with problematic alternatives may have burned YHOO’S bridges. The bridges leading back to the fertile fields of opportunity, which YHOO abandoned, may have suffered irreparable damage. MSFT retains its position as a leader and innovator in the “RAINFOREST” of technology. Posted By Bob Shelby Twp. Mi. : May 5, 2008 10:08 pm
Jerry Yang has a plan and it had better work after he turned down a “better than what it was actually worth” offer from Microsoft. Only time will tell if Jerry made a blunder from his ego or he has guts of steel. All this whining from Jerry about how Microsoft walking away is just drama on his part to lessen the blow. Yahoo share holders, you can run now and get some returns or wait for the pot of gold. Only time will tell. Posted By Patrick Tong, Roswell, GA : May 5, 2008 10:12 pm
F — Microsoft! I am with Yang all the way! Posted By Loyal to the Yodel! Sunnyvale, CA : May 5, 2008 10:36 pm
Good for Yahoo. I know everybody reading here are die hard M$ fans, but as a consumer, I applaud Yahoo. If M$ would have bought Yahoo!, you can be sure I would be a Google only man even if I don’t agree with them. M$ doesn’t offer good service like Yahoo! and Google do. I agree with your statement, Bing. I am in the the Airline biz and takeovers are bad news to anyone making less than $1 million at the company. Posted By eath, Midland, TX : May 6, 2008 10:07 am
Thank the lords this merger didn’t happen. Just what we needed would be one more giant piece of crap corporation. I happen to be a shareholder, but I am not one of those greedy idiots that trade stocks to make money. Those people should be ashamed of themselves as promoting mergers only makes this country more of a pile of shit, giving control of everything to a handful of giant corporations. Corps are why this country’s populace need to take drugs to live day to day. You assholes pushing for companies to make your stocks go up, is what makes companies not give a shit about its employees, and push them to work incomprehensible hours forcing them into depresion and creating the cycle of insanity in our society. So keep whing about your stock prices you jackasses. I will continue to only invest for the long haul in a company I like. Posted By John James,Chicago, IL : May 6, 2008 12:35 pm
“You assholes pushing for companies to make your stocks go up, is what makes companies not give a shit about its employees, and push them to work incomprehensible hours forcing them into depresion and creating the cycle of insanity in our society. So keep whing about your stock prices you jackasses. I will continue to only invest for the long haul in a company I like.” _______________________ What’s the problem here? Stocks are supposed to go up. Why should I care about what happens to every employee? I am not investing in companies for the people. I am investing in companies to generate a large profit. Shareholders are not there to run the business and take care of the details. They invest because they believe that the company can grow and that growth will help shareholders to get more cash. Any reason for investing other than making as much money as possible is lunacy. Stop pretending as if you care about the people. They certainly do not care about you. If you are not out here for self, you are not living a very good life. Posted By Yadgyu, Harkeyville, TX : May 6, 2008 5:18 pm
can Yang be this stupid. You should know something is up when your biggest rival offers you an olive branch. As I posted earlier Ballmer should come back later with an offer of $20 a share Posted By macdisser,bronx,new york : May 6, 2008 7:20 pm
Why are people so uncreatively stupid? What M$ should have done was imbed search engine hooks into all it’s various OSes, signed an agreement with Yahoo! to direct these hooks to Yahoo!, made these hooks hell to change, and then finally bought a 49% stake in Yahoo. Advertisers don’t have respect for you, they just want your eyes by any means possible so they can work their voodoo on you. e.g. Apple Computers are radically young and hip. This proves to me M$ never had a monopoly by design but rather one handed to them on a silver platter by the sheer ineptness of their competition. Posted By Jack S Salem, OR : May 7, 2008 7:00 pm
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Stanley Bing
Stanley Bing is a Fortune columnist and best-selling author of business books noted for their wisdom as well as their sharp, slightly acrid sense of humor. He is also the only writer on business and the workplace who still puts on a suit and tie and goes to do battle with the dragons that breathe fire at corporate America every day. This blog captures what remains of his brain after it has exploded in all other directions.
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Bull’s eye. Great metaphor.