It’s not really a shock to find out that Microsoft is interested in Buying Yahoo (YahSoft?). Microsoft has bidded a massive 50 Billion for the internet giant, probably to form an possible acquisition or partnership that could potentially topple Google as the search king. What will this mean for web designers and the internet?
Firstly, Microsoft has never really had the success of Yahoo or Google on the internet and has lost its market share over the years to the cuddly Google, Googles offering is a friendly simple to use face to internet searching that does seem to return more accurate search results and its Gmail to my mind is still the best webmail out there.
Yahoo has also been redesigned to be more user friendly over the years and boasts a larger search engine market share than Microsoft and also has a very successful email app to integrate.
Software Giant
As well as internet search results I belive one of the main reasons for the merger is the threat to Microsofts office suite and other desktop applications, at least in the home user market, Google Docs and Spreadsheets have prooved very popular and their ability for collaboratation very powerful, oh and the apps are free.
I cant see Microsofts dominance in commercial spaces being over taken any time soon, my company still prefers to have emails and applications on my desktop PC but free software could save larger companies millions.
But this is the area I think is the most exciting as Microsoft Yahoo could compete in this area forcing standards of free apps to become significantly better quality and a software war that can only be good for industry.
SEM and Advertising
Surely the biggest difference it will make to designers will actually be of Search Engine Marketing, Googles ad campaigns have been a massive success and we will simply have to know how to implement Yahoo Microsoft’s competing campaign.
Brand Identity
I believe the main reason to Microsofts failings in the search space is that their home page is badly designed and overly complicated, pair this with the bad press the company receives theres no wonder people prefer Google. Comparing Microsofts search to Googles slick and user friendly no frills layout tells the whole story, a well placed box for your search terms and a button to press, simple, effective.
Though Internet searhing is bound to become even more a part of the desktop and so having a YahSoft searchbar built into IE8 and Windows sidebar will help their position in the market.
Overall I think competition is good and the application of this merger can have a positive effect on internet / desktop apps, my only worry is that Microsoft have a tendencey to over complicate products, Vista being the latest example of this, but I do think the YahSoft brand could give Microsoft a chance to practice in an area thats not full of legacy code.