p2pnet news | Products:- Is this little more than another stage in the elaborate, if not bizarre, corporate courtship dance as Bill and the Boyz try to win the hand of Yahoo?

Or does it really spell the end?

After what amounted to three months of haggling between the two companies, Microsoft has apparently finally abandoned its bid to buy Yahoo.

“Citigroup Inc. and ThinkPanmure LLC analysts cut their ratings on Yahoo’s stock to ’sell’ after Microsoft withdrew its bid. Microsoft said this weekend it walked away when Yahoo demanded $37 a share after the $44.6 billion bid was raised by about $5 billion to $33 a share,” says Bloomberg News.

“Yahoo’s stock is going to crater, and Yahoo shareholders are going to go bang on everyone’s head and say, ‘How does this benefit me’?” the story has analysts Richard Williams saying.

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and senior VP Kevin Johnson met Yahoo co-founders Jerry Yang and David Filo over the weekend when Ballmer raised Microsoft’s offer, says Forbes.

But Yang, “wanted $37″ and after the meeting, “Ballmer sent a letter to Yang stating Microsoft’s withdrawal and adding that ‘a deal is not to be’,” says the story, adding:

“Did Microsoft do the right thing by walking away?

“Probably. Microsoft offered a hefty premium to Yahoo!’s price. The software titan’s original $31 a share offer on Jan. 31 was a 62% premium to the Internet portal’s stock price on that date. Microsoft said its last offer of $33 would have added another $5 billion in value to the deal.

“The deal was originally valued at $45 billion, but in the ensuing months, it fell to $42 billion as Microsoft’s stock price dipped.”

. .Stumble It!

three months of haggling - Microsoft may go hostile on Yahoo, May 2, 2007
Bloomberg News - Yahoo Shares Tumble After Microsoft Abandons Bid , May 5, 2008
Forbes - Microsoft-Yahoo!: Ten Takeaways, May 5, 2008

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This entry was posted on Monday, May 5th, 2008 at 5:28 am and is filed under Product News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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