Microsoft Corp went public Friday with an offer to buy Yahoo Inc. for $44.6 billion, a move designed to create a more credible competitor to industry leader Google Inc. and deepen Microsoft’s position in the market for online business software.

• The offer, for $31 a share in cash and stock, represents a 62% premium to Yahoo’s closing price Thursday.
• The companies held talks about partnering or merging in late 2006 and early 2007. Those talks included the potential of a merger proposal, but Yahoo told Microsoft in February it wasn’t interest in being acquired.

Published on 01 Feb 2008 | Company & Markets

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