NEWS

Microsoft Bids $ 44 Billion for Yahoo - Big Story on Wall Street for Silicon Valley
Who would have thought that the names that some Stanford students gave to two garage startup businesses would ever become two major internet search engines? Both Yahoo and Google were founded by four different Stanford University students and now they have become multi-billion dollar companies. Microsoft, another giant, is trying to buy Yahoo with an offer they can't refuse at 60% over market price to gain a strong foothold in the lucrative search engine market, which Google dominates. Yahoo shares rose 48% in one day (Feb. 1 2008). The following internet advertising market overview shows why this type of acquisition is happening at this time.

Internet Advertising 2008

$27.5 billion is the anticipated amount that will be spent in the U.S. on various forms of Internet advertising in 2008, according to projections. The internet continues to expand and increase in user participation, broadband connections, faster speed, and varieties of web presentations. Advertising on social networks and online video are both projected to grow at double-digit rates this year. MySpace and YouTube are the two leaders in this area that is growing rapidly. We predict that the next trend, just like searches, will be towards local social networking and online video sites, as local business opportunities seek to compete with national for local advertising dollars.