New Zealand Web Design

Google have just released their Google App Engine.

This looks like a very useful service and could take away many of the headaches of web development. If you are managing multiple servers, software updates, etc, etc, this service could be for you.

So it seems MS are prepping for a hostile take-over of Yahoo:

If we have not concluded an agreement within the next three weeks, we will be compelled to take our case directly to your shareholders, including the initiation of a proxy contest to elect an alternative slate of directors for the Yahoo! board. The substantial premium reflected in our initial proposal anticipated a friendly transaction with you. If we are forced to take an offer directly to your shareholders, that action will have an undesirable impact on the value of your company from our perspective which will be reflected in the terms of our proposal.

It is unfortunate that by choosing not to enter into substantive negotiations with us, you have failed to give due consideration to a transaction that has tremendous benefits for Yahoo!’s shareholders and employees. We think it is critically important not to let this window of opportunity pass.

Sincerely,
Steven A. Ballmer
Chief Executive Office
Microsoft Corp.

Link

If MS really goes through with replacing the board at MS, what are they really buying? Isn’t the value of a company the leaders who are developing their strategies and new technologies. Things move so quickly it’s almost impossible to develop and release a new web product that actually fits a dynamic market that has changed since development began. The kind of person that creates these apps are highly in tune with the web, creative and enthusiastic. These people are also wealthy and do not respond well to threats.

If MS sacks the board, they lose much of the real value of Yahoo. If they keep the board under threat of being sacked, they will probably leave as soon as possible anyway.

Perhaps the reason MS is buying Yahoo is to gain Yahoo’s share of the search engine market.

Perhaps MS thinks that if people type in www.yahoo.com into their browser when they want to find something on the net, they will continue typing in www.yahoo.com when it redirects to www.microsoft.com (or live.com, or msn.com, or whatever renaming shenanigans MS gets up to next with its web brand - what is the brand recognition of ‘Live’, I wonder).

What will actually happen, is that when someone types in www.yahoo.com and sees MS’s confusing web offerings, they will just type in www.google.com into their browser and stop typing www.yahoo.com.

Its not that difficult to switch search engine. Just typing one word is all it takes.

Yahoo is a Search Engine.

People keep telling me Yahoo has lots of other value than its search engine - web-mail, directory listings, homepages, etc.

The only reason people use these services is because when they started these up Yahoo was a major search engine, powered by Google. They had the best search engine (Google) so people used it. They were able to leverage this to lock users in to their account services.

Now that Yahoo powers its own search, they have less power to keep and retain new accounts. Google has its own account services now and people will continue to switch as long as Google’s search results continue to allow users to find what they are looking for as quickly as possible.

Google recently acquired the search engine optimisation firm Performics as part of its acquisition of DoubleClick.

There’s been a lot of chat in the blogosphere about how Performics would present a problem for Google as their main service is to improve results in Google’s natural search pages for their clients.

So today, Google has announced that it’s selling off Performics:

Since we closed the acquisition of DoubleClick on March 11, we’ve been immersed in integration planning for each of our products and business units. Recently we completed this process for the DoubleClick Performics businesses, and have decided to split them into two separately-run business units: Affiliate Marketing and Search Marketing.

It’s clear to us that we do not want to be in the search engine marketing business. Maintaining objectivity in both search and advertising is paramount to Google’s mission and core to the trust we ask from our users. For this reason, we plan to sell the Performics search marketing business to a third party. We believe this will allow us to maintain objectivity and the search marketing business to continue to grow and innovate and serve its customers. While we have not yet identified a buyer, we’ve received preliminary interest from a number of our current partners. Search Marketing will continue to run as a separate entity until the division is sold.

We plan to integrate the affiliate marketing business into existing Google operations, providing enhanced value and reach for our affiliate advertisers, and additional tools and monetization opportunities for our publishers. Together, we believe that we can continue to grow this business and deliver on the high expectations from partners.

Where it’s applicable in Europe, these plans and their implications for employees are subject to consultation with staff and employee representatives. During this transition, we will ensure that all affiliate and search marketing customers receive the same high level of service they have always experienced.