Google: Microsoft-Yahoo Deal is a Monopoly, Google-Yahoo Is Not - Google co-founder Larry Page said Thursday the Internet search leader opposed a Microsoft-Yahoo deal because it would monopolize the online communications market, stifle innovation and curb competition. But he discounted the idea that an advertising deal between Google and Yahoo would present any potential antitrust problems. Page said a successful Microsoft-Yahoo deal would have closed “a lot of things that are really important … like instant messaging.” “Now, if you put 90 percent of the ... read more ...

Microsoft: Not engaging in Buying Yahoo - In a report today Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer stated that is not looking to bid to buy all of Yahoo Inc. but is in talks about other types of deals. “We are not bidding to buy Yahoo. “Yet, we are trying to have discussions about deals with Yahoo that might create value, but not a whole acquisition of the company,” he said without elaborating further. Microsoft is proposing to buy Yahoo’s search business and take a minority stake in it. For its part, Yahoo has said it was considering a “number ... read more ...

Communicate.com Has Record 1st Quarter - Communicate.com, db/a Live Current Media,  one of the stocks in our Domain Parking Stock Index reported its 1st quarter financial results for the period ended March 31, 2008. Total revenues for the 1st quarter totaled $1.9 million, an increase of approximately 10%, compared to $1.7 million for the period ended March 31, 2007. The increase was primarily from the Health Beauty commerce product sales from Perfume.com, which increased nearly 29% over the previous ... read more ...

Google now Number 1 Site in U.S. - According to a report in the Associated Press, Google for the first time, has passed Yahoo as the most popular Web destination in the U.S., according to research firm comScore Inc. Google U.S. audience grew 18% in April compared with the period a year earlier, to 141.1 million. Yahoo’s U.S. audience, grew only 7% to 140.6 million. Microsoft  came in third at roughly 121 million. Google+Michael Berkens ... read more ...

Icahn May Launch a Proxy Battle for Yahoo - Late today, reports surfaced that Carl Icahn acquired up to 50 million shares in Yahoo. According to the reports, Icahn is considering mounting a proxy fight to take control of the board of directors at Yahoo. Shares of Yahoo were up more than 5% in afternoon trading, after having been down over $1 a share earlier in the day. Shareholders have until Thursday to nominate a board of directors. The election is on July 3, 2008 when all 10 of Yahoo!’s board of directors are up for election. The question ... read more ...

What Should Microsoft Do With That $46 Billion?: How About Buy Domains - So now that Microsoft’s attempt to buy Yahoo has failed (at least for now) what can Microsoft do to take traffic away from Yahoo and Google and move it to MSN? How about buy domains. More specifically buy large domain portfolios and redirect the traffic to MSN. Microsoft was willing to spend $46 Billion for Yahoo. By all accounts it would take well over a year to get regulatory approval for a deal with Yahoo, which will cost tens of millions more and then most lightly 2-3 years to truly integrate ... read more ...

Did Google Play Microsoft?? - According to a report in the Wall Street Journal today, Google may be getting cold feet. In a last-ditch effort to avoid a merger with Microsoft, Yahoo said it was considering teaming with Google in a search advertising deal. But some Google executives are now questioning whether that’s a good idea Google knows any deal with Yahoo will face tough scrutiny from regulators in Washington and the European Union. Last month Yahoo ran a two-week test displaying some of Google’s search ads on about ... read more ...

Marchex Reports Earnings - Marchex.com reported 1st Quarter 2008 Financial Results today. The following is what they reported Revenue was $37.0 million for the first quarter of 2008, compared to $34.2 million for the same period of 2007. GAAP net loss applicable to common stockholders was $1.2 million for the first quarter of 2008 or $0.03 loss per diluted share. This compares to GAAP net income applicable to common stockholders of $548,000 or $0.01 per diluted share for the same period ... read more ...

Yahoo-Microsoft: Now What???? - While the chess game between Microsoft and Yahoo continues, domainers seem to be a pawn. After announcing that they were dropping there bid for Yahoo, the question becomes what will happen to Yahoo, Microsoft, Google and most importantly how will this all effect domainers. Yahoo stock price closed north of $28.50 Friday. Prior to Microsoft’s offer in January, Yahoo stock was trading around $20 a share. We expect Yahoo to trade somewhere between $20-$24 on Monday. Investors definitely will punish ... read more ...

Wall Street Journal: Yahoo-Microsoft in Talks - According to a report by the Wall Street Journal today, Yahoo and Microsoft met Wednesday trying to reach an agreement on price for Microsoft’s acquisition of Yahoo According to the report, Microsoft, which proposed purchasing Yahoo for for $31 a share in January, is now allegedly poised to offer as much as $32 or $33 a share. However according to the report major Yahoo shareholders are still looking for something in the range of $35 to $37 per share, the Journal said. Google+Michael Berkens ... read more ...

Microsoft: “Offer for Yahoo is Generous” - Chief Executive Steve Ballmer of Microsoft, stated today that their offer for Yahoo is fair, and it doesn’t intend to raise it. “Our bid is quite generous, roughly eighty times earnings…the combination would make a great company,” Ballmer said at a conference with business leaders in Madrid. “If we don’t hear from Yahoo, we’ve said we’ll go to their shareholders,” Ballmer added. Yahoo is trading down $.57 at $26.73. Google+Michael Berkens ... read more ...

Baidu distinction Jumps - Baidu.com, reported net income for the 1st quarter jumped 71.5% to $20.9 million, or 60 cents a share, in the first quarter, matching the estimate consensus of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters. Costs related to Baidu’s Japan operations in the first quarter totaled $4.3 million, which reduced earnings by 12 cents a share. Revenue jumped 108% to $81.9 million which topped estimates which were for $75 million. It also beat the company’s own guidance of $73.1 million to $75.1 million. Online marketing ... read more ...

CNET and Yahoo Announce Search and Advertising Partnership - CNET Networks and Yahoo announced today what they term a broad, three year strategic partnership that includes content, advertising, and search marketing components. Under the partnership: CNET.com will provide technology content, including news, product reviews and original video, to Yahoo Tech and Yahoo News. The agreement significantly expands the technology content currently available on Yahoo, and will include hundreds of monthly news stories from News.com, ... read more ...

Yahoo’s Profit Beat Estimates, though is it adequate to Stop Microsoft?? - Yahoo reported slightly better than expected 1st quarter results on Tuesday, but failed to deliver the blowout quarter that many analysts said it needed to get a higher takeover offer from Microsoft. Yahoo we down $.19 cents in after hours trading following the report, as the results are seen as not being strong enough for Yahoo to increase its leverage against Microsoft. Strong results were considered to be Yahoo’s best chance to make its case to shareholders that it should remain independent, ... read more ...

Google Winds adult $90 higher, 20% benefit on a day - Google after reporting blowout numbers for the 1st quater, blew past $500 winding up at just under $540 up $89.87 for the day. Google hit an intraday high of $547. Baidu was up over 10% or $31.25 a share following Google lead Google+Michael Berkens ... read more ...

Google’s 1st Q increase Tops Estimates: Stock adult 20% after hours - Google released it 1st Quater profit’s today after the market closed soundly beating Wall Street’s estimates., Google’s net income rose 30% to $1.31 billion, or $4.12 per share. Excluding one-time charges, Google said it earned $1.54 billion, or $4.84 per share, beating estimates of analysts polled by Thomson Financial, who typically exclude one-time items from their estimates, of $4.52 cents per share. Sales rose 42% to $5.2 billion. More than half of Google’s sales came from outside the ... read more ...

Live Current signs 50M Deal - Communicate.com, now Live Current Media Inc., part of our Domain Parking Stock Index, announced today that it will launch IPLT20.com tomorrow as the official site for the DLF Indian Premier League, and will become the exclusive online provider of content from the Board of Control for Cricket in India and the DLF Indian Premier League. Under the ten year agreement Live Current will build, launch and operate the official online destinations for the DLF Indian Premier ... read more ...

WSJ: Yahoo Close to Deal with Google - According to a report published today by the Wall Street Journal, Yahoo is closer to outsourcing its core ad search business to Google, after favorable testing of Google’s advertisements on its search pages. The WSJ said that a deal between Yahoo and Google is increasingly likely given the status of the testing. The report also notes that such an outsourcing deal could give Yahoo a boost in its efforts to spur Microsoft into increasing its unsolicited buyout bid for the Internet search pioneer. Yahoo ... read more ...

Yahoo Share of Seach Ad Spending Increased in 1st Q - According to report today by SearchIgnite, a paid search management technology solutions firm, Yahoo  posted a 57.6% growth in search ad spending in the first quarter compared to a year ago. Yahoo’s share of search ad spending in the first quater increased to 24.2% from 19.6% in the first quarter a year ago. Google’s share of the market fell in the first quarter to 70.4% from 74.5%, and Microsoft’s share fell to 5.45% from 5.9%. Overall, search ad spending was up 28.5 percent in the first ... read more ...

Yahoo and AOL in a Partnership??? - According to a report tonight in the Wall Street Journal, Yahoo and AOL are closing in on a deal to combine their Internet operations, a move that could thwart Microsoft Corp.’s effort to acquire Yahoo. The possible Yahoo-AOL partnership, is according to the Journal, part of a plan by Yahoo to present shareholders with alternatives to accepting Microsoft’s unsolicited offer. According to the report Time Warner would fold its AOL unit into Yahoo and make a cash investment in return for about ... read more ...

Yahoo to exam it’s trade during Google - In a move that would quite bad for the domain industry, if it became permanent, Yahoo announced today that it was beginning a 2 week test of about 3% of its traffic through Google’s adsence program. Yahoo stated that “The testing does not necessarily mean that Yahoo will join Google’s AdSense for Search program or that any further commercial relationship with Google will result,” This is clearly a missile fired by Yahoo at Microsoft. Yahoo insists it’s worth more than the initial bid of ... read more ...

Google got 2/3 of internet hunt trade in March - According to a report by information service Hitwise, Google Inc. received 67% of all U.S. Internet searches during the four weeks ended March 29. Google received 64% of all U.S. Internet searches in the same period a year earlier. Yahoo Inc. received 20% of U.S. Web searches, MSN Search drew 7% and Ask.com 4%. Google+Michael Berkens ... read more ...

Yahoo: Deal with Microsoft OK, if they compensate more - The back and forth very public negoiations and posturing between Yahoo and Microsoft continued today with Jerry Yang, chief executive of Yahoo, and Chairman Roy Bostock senting a letter Monday to Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, reiterating that the current offer is “not in the best interests of shareholders” of Yahoo. “We are open to all alternatives that maximize stockholder value,” Yang and Bostock said in the letter. “To be clear, this includes a transaction with Microsoft if it represents ... read more ...

Yahoo to Preview “Amp” Platform Monday - According to reports, Yahoo Inc. is going to show off a major upgrade to it advertising network tommorow, called “Amp”,  with an online video demonstration Yahoo promises Amp will make it easier for advertisers to aim their messages at specific demographic groups across scores of Web sites. “This is a revolutionary approach that will allow marketers and publishers to deliver a more compelling experience for consumers,” said Hilary Schneider, Yahoo’s executive vice president of global partner ... read more ...

Microsoft sets Apr 26 Deadline for Yahoo - One day after Reuter reported that Microsoft was “evaluation” its offer for Yahoo based on worsening marketing conditions, on Saturaday, in a a letter to Yahoo’s board,  Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said his company is tired of waiting for Yahoo to work out a deal, warning that if a deal wasn’t reached by April 26 the software maker would launch a hostile takeover at a less attractive price. “It has now been more than two months since we made our proposal to acquire Yahoo! at a 62% premium ... read more ...