Display Ads - Microdoft, Yahoo Common Grounds

SAN FRANCISCO (Dow Jones)--As per breaking news, Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) and Yahoo Inc. (YHOO) are at the table to discuss - yet again - a combination of their Internet businesses. A new twist: The possibility that Yahoo take over Microsoft's display advertising business.

On Friday, a person familiar with the situation said Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer and Yahoo CEO Carol Bartz had met to discuss potential partnership structures. A range of ideas were being discussed, though a full acquisition of Sunnyvale, Calif.-based Yahoo is not among them, the person said.

An intriguing aspect of the new talks, which stem from discussions that started last year, is the concept of Redmond, Wash.-based Microsoft turning over its some of its display advertising operations to Yahoo, the leader in the Internet billboard market. This would likely be part of a broader collaboration that includes the much-larger search advertising market, where Yahoo and Microsoft trail far behind rival Google Inc. (GOOG).

The new wrinkle is tacit recognition the two companies have far more to gain by joining forces to battle Google than they stand to give up in terms of independence or control. Microsoft has a tiny share of both search and display advertising, but has the resources, technical capacity and will to take on Google because the company's ubiquitous software is the way many users will access Internet search.

And despite all its problems, Yahoo has an Internet brand that few companies can hope to match. It is still the largest player in the display advertising market.

Whether the two sides can cut a deal remains an open question. Since Microsoft's $47.5 billion unsolicited takeover offer collapsed last May, the relationship between the two companies has been guarded at best. Relations have thawed since co-founder Jerry Yang surrendered stewardship of Yahoo to Bartz in January. Investors, many of whom feel taking on Google individually is near impossible, are pushing the companies to collaborate.

Andrew Frank, an analyst at research firm Gartner, said a partnership between the companies would allow them to get the best of each others' businesses and technologies, while preventing needless duplication and competition. Some disciplines, like advertising sales, would naturally fall to Yahoo. Microsoft could better focus on its strengths like helping Internet publishers manage ad inventory.

Of course, a display deal wouldn't be a silver bullet for either company. Display advertising is less than a fifth of the $23.6 billion market for Internet advertising in the U.S. The big money is made in search advertising and the lion's share of it is being made by Google.

Still, a display deal may pave the way for a larger collaborative relationship that resolves both companies' thorny search problems.

Microsoft: Windows 7 Downgradeable to XP - Breaking News Updates

Microsoft's beloved operating system Windows XP might just get another extension. With Windows 7, the software giant Microsoft and PC makers will offer Windows 7 downgrade options. Under the downgrade option, PC buyers would be able to downgrade Windows 7 to Vista or even Windows XP. Of course, there would be certain conditions applicable.



Microsoft s Windows 7 looks good enough to repair Windows Vista's woes. While the public beta is available and being used, Microsoft is rumored to be releasing Windows 7's release candidate this summer. Apple Insider reported that HP got the green signal for extension of rights to sell Windows XP loaded systems till April 30, 2010. Also, HP would be offering volume-license users the option to downgrade to Windows XP.



Mary Jo Foley, who writes on All About Microsoft Blog, questioned Microsoft on the Windows XP downgrade rights. Foley stated that Microsoft will offer downgrade rights to users for downgrading Windows 7 to earlier Windows versions. So, basically, users can downgrade Windows 7 to Windows XP, Windows 2000, or even Windows 98.


Getting back to the HP-related downgrade arrangement, the Microsoft spokesperson warded off the possibility of HP-exclusive downgrade rights. Microsoft said that the downgrade policies will be applicable to all main OEM partners and not as a special arrangement. Microsoft s spokesperson stated, No dates have been announced for the end of Windows 7 downgrade right facilitation to Windows XP.



To be noted, Microsoft and its OEM partners offer downgrade rights on only two Windows Vista versions Business and Ultimate. Either of these versions could be downgraded to XP Professional. Not to be forgotten that the OEMs charge customers a price for the downgrade. Customers buying new machines with Windows XP downgrade from Windows Vista this summer would also be eligible for free Windows 7 upgrade.



It is interesting that people are actually concerned about downgrade options even before the release date of Windows 7 is announced. On the other hand, Apple offers upgrades to their Mac OS X operating systems, and a preview of the Snow Leopard is expected at the Worldwide Developers Conference 2009 starting June 8.



It would be unfair to compare these options since a majority of corporate customers are concerned about supporting their infrastructure, services, and products with multiple operating systems from the same company. Yet another wait and watch game for customers to check out what s in store with regards to Windows 7.

Worldwide alert on Microsoft browser

According to Breaking News from our Staff Reporter : MORE than 500 million internet users around the world are at risk from a major flaw discovered in Microsoft's Internet Explorer software that can give criminals access to personal details, including banking passwords and log-ins.

Microsoft Australia said yesterday it was "working around the clock" to fix the fault in the popular internet browser, used by about 70 per cent of net users worldwide, live news channel reports.

About 2 million people, most of them outside Australia, are believed to have fallen victim to the flaw after visiting apparently safe websites, and the problem threatens to sweep the worldwide web, Britain's Daily Mail reported yesterday.

The newspaper said that hackers in China were at the centre of the cyber attack, the most serious in the history of Microsoft's operating system.

Hackers are believed to have used the technology to steal computer game passwords, which can be sold on the black market in Asia and there are fears cyber criminals will exploit the flaw to steal passwords to gain access to internet bank accounts or send out spam emails.

Experts said that users did not have to download any files for their computers to get infected made the flaw in Explorer particularly dangerous.

In a statement released yesterday, Microsoft Australia said a vulnerability had been found to affect all versions of Internet Explorer. The statement said Microsoft teams had developed an "emergency patch", due to be released at 5am today, to protect customers from the problem.

"When the patch is released people should run, not walk, to get it installed," said Trend Micro advanced threat researcher Paul Ferguson.

"This vulnerability is being actively exploited by cyber criminals and getting worse every day."

He said Trend Micro had identified about 10,000 websites that had been infected with malicious software that can be surreptitiously slipped into visitors' unprotected Internet Explorer browsers to A security adviser to Microsoft Australia, Stuart Strathdee, said he could not comment on how many Australians had been affected, but said the impact had been minimal, with only a "small number" of users directly suffering. People who had activated their automatic security update would automatically receive the "emergency patch" as soon as it is available, he said.

Those who had configured their computers not to install updates should visit the security section of the Microsoft website: www.microsoft.com.au/security to download it, he said.

Microsoft rarely issues security fixes for its software outside of its regular monthly updates. The last occasions on which the company did were in October, and earlier last year.