Comments on: Top Yahoo shareholders could support Microsoft

The Net giant is calling on Redmond to bump up its bid, but many of its largest shareholders have dual ownership in both stocks.

[alenas]

Yahoo are dumb

I do not think Microsoft really needs Yahoo, but Yahoo desperately needs Microsoft.
If I would be Microsoft I would just let Yahoo die :)

[fred dunn]

Agreed. Let Yahoo & Stock go down the tubes

Regardles of stock price (since speculation drives that out of whack) Microsoft should not pay a penny more if they buy it at all.

Personnaly I think that Microsoft is buying a dying company, despite what Jerry Yang says.

Yahoo has been losing value for a while now and it was interesting to see that the offer tendered by Microsoft raised Yahoo's stock value and lowered Microsoft's.

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that Yahoo need an infusion of capital in a bad way and a new direction, GET RID OF THE CURRENT BOARD!

On the other hand Microsoft's offer of (at the time) 62% premium over the stock value was that high over the stock value for a reason...So Yahoo would just say YES.

Instead Yahoo's executives and board of directors in their infinite wisdom and six figure salaries (that would end abruptly after a sale) decided that wasn't enough.

NOT ENOUGH FOR WHO!

It's damned sure enough for the shareholders.

1. Microsoft should pull the offer, not buy Yahoo.
2. Microsoft needs to get a smart marketing team and start marketing their own branding with new twists.
3. Build many more datacenters throughout the world and make Microsoft the quickest at everything online. We are in a web-centric era and if it doesn't feel like to the user like it is running on their machine like a local app then it's not going to work.
4. Microsoft needs to offer "on the cheap" hosted exchange services in ALL of their datacenters. If the customer wants to buy the services then don't palce the occasional ad or banner in the email, otherwise offer ad supported EXCHANGE email.
That is one of your best products, make it available.

But in the end I think MS should just let Yahoo die.

[TV James]

Two more articles worth reading...

I'd recommend these two articles...

The Men Behind the Curtain: What's really happening in the proposed Microsoft-Yahoo merger.
http://www.pbs.org/cringely/pulpit/2008/pulpit_20080208_004240.html

Plan B: What if Microsoft doesn't really hope to buy Yahoo at all?
http://www.pbs.org/cringely/pulpit/2008/pulpit_20080215_004309.html

[microsoft slayer]

I support a $50 yahoo...

I'll sell my shares for $50 if you microsoft idiots are willing!

[TV James]

How many shares do you own?

I'll give you $50 for them. Oh... wait... you weren't saying PER SHARE were you?

Someone would have to have a low opinion of the rest of the world and be pretty deluded about their own intelligence to make that kind of offer.

[fred dunn]

MS, Let Yahoo die a slow death.

Once Microsoft pulls it's bid for Yahoo the share price for Yahoo will go into the high teens ($18-$15/share).
The only thing that is shoring it up now is Microsoft's bid. Nobody else wants it.

Microsoft should get a top notch marketing firm to get their "Live" services known to more than just the techno-geek types.

Then start improving on the services based on demand and customer feedback. Finally BUILD MORE DATACENTERS and get some talented search analysts to spruce up up algorithm and differentiate it from all others.

That is a far better way to spend $44B.

Yahoo is in the tank. MICROSOFT DON'T BUY THEM! They are not worth the capital and your shareholders will thank you.