A year ago, the two companies were reportedly in talks about a
merger, but those conversations were dismissed as rumors and
speculation. Well, here’s Microsoft and Yahoo 2.0.

A pairing in the spirit of a superhero teamup could happen if the
latest chatter about Yahoo and Microsoft proves true. Once again,
a potential merger is being considered, as neither company has
made gains against Google’s search and advertising dominance.

The Wall Street Journal said last year’s talks have become this
year’s discussions. Both Yahoo and Microsoft have been rejiggering
their online advertising products, but have not been able to eat
into Google’s lead.

“Short of a wholesale merger, Microsoft could spin its online
group into a separately-run Yahoo, in return for a Yahoo stake,”
the WSJ said. “Though a person familiar with the matter says
Microsoft would likely want to acquire Yahoo.”

Microsoft would have to take on some debt to do that, despite its
massive pile of cash and equivalents. Yahoo is up to a market cap
of over $38 billion, thanks to rumors of the Microsoft talks that
began in the New York Post.

The Post carried a story earlier in the week that claimed
Microsoft was ready to purchase 24/7 Real Media, in order to
offset Google’s DoubleClick deal as well as Yahoo’s Right Media
purchase. A Microsoft spokesperson would not comment on the
story to WebProNews, citing the article as rumors and speculation.

If Microsoft were to make a deal with Yahoo, the WSJ thinks
there could be some massive upheaval in Yahoo’s executive ranks.
Considering Yahoo’s performance for shareholders over the past
couple of years, it’s hard to think of that as a negative here.

They found that the iPhone is not yet a household word but that 47
percent of respondents were aware of the product and 17 percent had
an interest in buying it, which they noted was impressive for a
product that has not yet been released.

When it came to the question of when people would buy an iPhone,
nine percent said they would purchase the product at launch, while
another 8 percent would buy before their wireless service contract
expired. Around 17 percent said they would hold off on making a
purchase and wait for their current wireless service to expire.