Stock Investment Blog|Journal of Stock Investments|Portfolio

Custom Search

Microsoft To Focus On Advertising,Web Search Business -Gates

Last Update: 5/9/2008 4:51:24 AM

JAKARTA (AP)–Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) will focus on growing its own advertising
and Internet search business after it withdrew its takeover offer for Yahoo Inc.
(YHOO), Chairman Bill Gates said Friday.

Microsoft has not presented an alternative strategy to compete with its dominant
rival in the Internet business, Google Inc. (GOOG), since withdrawing a $47.5
billion bid for Yahoo Inc. last weekend.

Analysts have been left wondering how the world’s largest software maker will get
a larger piece of that multibillion dollar market without a major tie-up.

“We have always felt we could do very well on our own, and now that’s the path we
are focused on,” Gates said in an interview with The Associated Press in Jakarta
Friday.

“The standard strategy for us is to just hire great engineers and surprise people
at how well we can compete, even with a company that’s got a strong lead,” he
said.

Gates says Microsoft remained open to making acquisitions, but declined to
comment on possible candidates, such as networking sites like Facebook, in which
Microsoft already holds a 1.6% stake.

“You never know if there’s going to be a deal that makes sense,” he said.

Microsoft has developed its own search-ad platform and bought aQuantive, an
Internet advertising company, for US$6 billion, but its U.S. online operations
are loss-making.

It has captured just 10% of U.S. Internet searches, compared with Google’s 58%
and Yahoo’s 22%.

Gates also said that the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has donated US$3
million for emergency relief efforts in Myanmar and will provide software to help
reunite family members separated in the cyclone.

The funds were transferred to the aid agencies Mercy Corps, World Vision and Care
“so they can go in there and help as quickly as possible,” he said.

Gates was in Indonesia to meet with government leaders, including President
Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, at a conference on development called The Government
Leaders Forum.

No comments yet.

Comments RSS TrackBack Identifier URI

You must be logged in to post a comment.