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Filed under: News, Google

You weren't alone in thinking Google overpaid for YouTube

YouTube
Remember when Google bought YouTube for $1.65 billion back in 2006? A lot of observers couldn't help but feel that maybe Google was paying a bit too much for a service that hadn't really demonstrated a profitable business model yet.

And you know what? Google CEO Eric Schmidt agrees. Kind of. CNET reports that in a deposition earlier this year, Schmidt stated that he asked Google's board of directors to approve the $1.65 billion figure, even though the board only believed YouTube was worth between $600 and $700 million at the time.

Basically, if Google didn't spend the extra money, Schmidt was under the impression that another company would purchase the web's most popular video site instead. And while YouTube wasn't making any real money in 2006, Google has continued to build the site's traffic while rolling out several different revenue models.

What do you think. In retrospect, do you still think Google paid too much for YouTube?

Filed under: Microsoft, Yahoo!

Maybe Microsoft is serious about buying Yahoo! after all

Microsoft MoneyIt looks like the acquisition talks between Microsoft and Yahoo! are back on. The other day we were picking on Microsoft for setting an ultimatum, and then letting it pass with no real consequences. But the New York Times reports that there's probably a good reason Microsoft hasn't followed through with their threat to replace Yahoo!'s board: the company actually think it can hammer out a peaceful agreement.

Sources close to the deal are saying that Microsoft is willing to raise its bid to about $33 a share. That's less than the $37 a share some Yahoo! shareholders are hoping for, but significantly higher than the $29 a share Microsoft is currently offering. If this all sounds like the two companies are squabbling over just a few bucks, keep this in mind: Every $1 per share increase raises the value of the transaction by about $1.4 billion.

It's still totally possible that this deal could fall through. Microsoft's Steve Ballmer says he's got a firm limit in mind and will not pay a penny more, while Yahoo!'s Jerry Yang says the previous offers were too low, but has not publicly stated what the right price might be. If the negotiations go nowhere, Microsoft could follow through on its threat to initiate a hostile takeover, but in the long run that could wind up costing even more money.

Filed under: Business, Internet, Security, Utilities, Windows, Office, Productivity, Microsoft

Microsoft buys VPN Whale

Whale CommunicationsMicrosoft has now acquired Whale Communications, a maker of VPN (virtual private network) technology. Whale technology uses SSL encryption to provide secure access to business users across unsecured networks. According to Bob Kelly, general manager of Infrastructure Marketing, Microsoft wants to increase the quality and security of their offerings with Whale's technology. This is good news for Microsoft users in the future, and IT departments as well. Whale's products join the ever increasing slew of Microsoft business applications for teleworkers. If you connect to a VPN for work in a corporate environment, Microsoft's acquisition of Whale may find it's way to your desktop soon.

[Via Microsoft PressPass]

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The World's Hardest Game 2.0 - Time Waster

So, just how good at time waster games are you? Think you've got the stuff? Well, The World's Hardest Game 2.0 doesn't think you do. Yes, amazingly, it's possible to have a sequel to a game called "The World's Hardest Game". It doesn't seem logically possible, since if the first one was actually the world's hardest, how could another one come along and share the moniker? It made me doubt the name in the first place. That is, until I tried the game. The mechanics of the game are very simple. You are a small red square, ...

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