[conspire] (forw) [Evals] Microsoft buys aQuantive (was: New blood)

[Don Marti]

begin Rick Moen quotation of Fri, May 18, 2007 at 02:13:48PM -0700:

> Apparently, Microsoft Corporation badly, badly wanted a ride on the same
> bus, because they just acquired qQuantive for SIX GIGABUCKS (US $6 x 10^9).

This is like the maker of the Walkman acquiring a
record company.

Browser maintainers and ad network operators are
_natural enemies_.  One company can't be great
at both.  The browser needs to work for the user,
even when it means calling bullshit on the ad network.

> Hmm, sudden, massive market diversification immediately following the
> firm's annual Be Very Afraid Tour?[1]  Maybe a sign that those
> unspecified patents are mostly crap, and that they fear increasing
> danger to the monopoly gravy-train?

No, but the online advertising market is an auction
market.  Big auctions attract traders out of small
auctions selling the same goods.  Google is doing
to the ad market what eBay did to the random stuff
market.
  http://www.linuxworld.com/community/?q=node/475

-- 
Don Marti                    
http://zgp.org/~dmarti/
dmarti at zgp.org