Source: Microsoft wins Facebook bid battle
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The deal is expected to include an expansion of the software maker's advertising deal with Facebook, which only covers the U.S.
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InfoWorld - Microsoft has approached Facebook&#160;in recent weeks proposing an investment that would give Microsoft a stake of up to 5 percent in the popular social-networking company, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday.
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Why does Microsoft think Facebook is worth $15bn? Here are 15 possible reasons....
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Microsoft has won the browser wars, but a battle is raging for the runner-up spot and one of the contenders has recently been refreshed.
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BREAKING NEWS - This afternoon, Microsoft won the apparent battle for an equity stake in social networking applications provider Facebook, making a $240 million equity investment in the company. In exchange, Microsoft will become the exclusive third-party supplier of Facebook's advertising platform.
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Online social network Facebook is  close to reaching a deal with Google Inc  or Microsoft  Corp  for an investment that would value the company as  high as $15 billion, according to media reports on Wednesday.
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Microsoft's $240 million investment is much smaller than the rumored $750 million that Facebook sought. Why the difference? Epicenter's Terrence Russell analyzes the deal.
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Rumors that Microsoft is negotiating a stake in social networking site Facebook could mean another bubble in Internet company values.
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Facebook is on the block and bidders can't flunk out this time.
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Like watching your dad dance at the prom The Wall Street Journal says Microsoft is looking to acquire a stake in famed Web 2.0 social networking operation Facebook. Referencing unnamed sources "familiar with the matter", the finance writers suggested Redmond might take five per cent of Facebook for "roughly $300m to $500m".â¦
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Microsoft will take a 240-million-dollar stake in the wildly popular social networking website Facebook as part of an expansion of the two firms' strategic alliance, the companies said Wednesday.
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Microsoft will take a 240-million-dollar stake in the wildly popular social-networking website Facebook as part of an expansion of the strategic alliance of the two firms, the companies said Wednesday.
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OSLO/LAS VEGAS  - Microsoft Corp  bid $1.2  billion to buy Norwegian business search software company Fast  Search & Transfer  in a deal focused on helping  corporations manage and sift through their own files, a growing  market also targeted by Google Inc .
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Microsoft Corp won an estimated $500 million, 5-year Internet advertising deal with MTV Networks owner Viacom Inc, giving the software giant a boost against rivals Google Inc and Yahoo Inc.
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The Wall Street Journal says Microsoft has proposed an investment that would give it a stake of up to 5 percent in Facebook.
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Facebook will sell a $240 million minority stake to Microsoft, which as part of the deal will also expand the advertising services it provides to the social networking phenom, the companies said Wednesday in a statement.The size of the ownership stake Microsoft will take during Facebook&#39;s next round of financing puts Facebook&#39;s valuation at a whopping $15 billion.&#160;Google had reportedly been courting Facebook as well.In addition to the ownership piece, Microsoft will also extend its existing agreement to provide banner ads to Facebook in the U.S. With this deal, Microsoft will become Facebook&#39;s exclusive third-party ad platform as well as provide Facebook ads internationally.Facebook will likely devote the cash influx from its next financing round to bankroll the torrid growth it is expecting in the coming 12 months in usage and headcount.With about 300 employees now, Facebook expects to have about 700 a year from now, its CEO and co-founder Mark Zuckerberg said last week at the&#160;Web 2.0 Summit.Meanwhile, the site is growing its usage at breakneck speed with about 250,000 new users registering every day.Founded in 2004, it currently has about 49 million active users today, up from 12 million in December. More than half of its active members return to the site daily. Some 59 percent of its users are outside the U.S.Earlier Wednesday, The Wall Street Journal and The New York Post reported that Facebook was in the final stages of making a decision on whether to do this deal with Microsoft or Google.For Microsoft, which hasn&#39;t attained as strong a position in online advertising as it had hoped and lags behind Google, landing this deal could be a major win, as long as Facebook proves to be as attractive an advertising vehicle as expected.The Journal reported later on Wednesday that Facebook expects a profit of about $30 million this year, on revenue of $150 million.Google and Yahoo provide ads for Facebook rival MySpace.Still, questions remain about social networking sites&#39; full potential for advertising, since most of their content is largely unregulated and created by millions of individuals, resulting often in material that is vulgar and objectionable.Facebook plans to share more ideas for revving up its advertising business on Nov. 6, at an event in New York to which it has invited what it calls &quot;its closest advertisers.&quot;&quot;As part of [the event], Facebook executives will discuss new approaches for advertising online,&quot; a Facebook spokeswoman said. &quot;We are not sharing any further details.&quot;Facebook, MySpace, and others are also under close scrutiny from law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad because sexual predators use social-networking sites to stalk and victimize people, in particular minors.The Journal first reported Google&#39;s and Microsoft&#39;s pursuit of the Facebook investment a month ago.
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SAN FRANCISCO -- Rapidly rising Internet star Facebook Inc. has sold a 1.6 percent stake to Microsoft Corp. for $240 million, spurning a competing offer from online search leader Google Inc.