Comments on: First Evening at Microsoft's SAS: Aha!

By: Mike

Mike — Tue, 08 May 2007 22:02:58 +0000

One of the most insightful, thought-provoking blog posts that has ever crossed my reader.

By: nmw

nmw — Tue, 08 May 2007 20:20:44 +0000

a federation of mini micro media (why not add 3M?) yabetta! ask us (w/intel, too — and get Bob Dylan to sing (he’s got a million friends, right?) that they’ll be “talkin’ ta’ you” at their GRAND OPENING EVENT !!!

;D nmw

By: YahooSoftie

YahooSoftie — Tue, 08 May 2007 16:42:24 +0000

John, as someone who has worked at both companies, I find the potential for an acquisition or partnership between these two absolutely intriguing, though I’m not sure the GE analogy works here. I don’t think GE bought many companies that had so much overlap with the “Mother Ship.” A Yahoo!-MSFT merger would mean the combined entity would have to decide which search platform to go with, which search advertising platform to go with, which display advertising platform to go with, which sales force takes the lead with which clients, which email and IM to offer, etc. etc. etc. It could work if MSFT just ceded all of the online services and brand to Yahoo!, but that would mean a lot of “redundancies” in Redmond. Not sure what the appetite is for that kind of bloodletting.

By: Gay Ludlow

Gay Ludlow — Tue, 08 May 2007 16:37:26 +0000

Careful John, they’ll be offering you the job of VP in charge of derring do.

By: John Battelle

John Battelle — Tue, 08 May 2007 15:48:40 +0000

Anthony – I did not say I thought MSFT can’t beat Google. I said it might not….

By: Anthony

Anthony — Tue, 08 May 2007 15:01:08 +0000

I find it interesting that you seem to really believe that Microsoft can’t beat Google. I for one think this race is long from being called.

By: John

John — Tue, 08 May 2007 12:48:59 +0000

Why Microsoft can't be GE: Bad Management.

They need a new playbook. New management, from outside the organization, to help them transition the company from its current state.

The current team has done an incredible job of building a cash generating behemoth. Its a remarkable story, but now it is time for them to find the courage to go get outside help. This is a big sick animal and its going to take a helluva lot more than just Ray Ozzie to turn this puppy around.

By: Perry

Perry — Tue, 08 May 2007 11:03:41 +0000

Hey John, fascinating analogy...I picked up the same thread in my blog post, with the following related rumination on the "mother ship"...

"There may be more interesting scenarios on the white boards these days. I am intrigued with a deep alliance/venture between at&t and Yahoo. Yahoo has managed to show some serious life in mobile. at&t has a killer mobile asset base and in yellow pages and 411 - these can combine to pose a really serious threat to Google’s intentions. mobile + social feels like a much more formidable combination from which to battle and differentiate. On the MS-YHOO front, the notion of breaking up Microsoft, and reforming a more powerful online media company w/Yahoo with deep distribution relationship to the mother ship also may have merit."

By: Jackie Shervington

Jackie Shervington — Tue, 08 May 2007 08:51:41 +0000

Thanks John – why not I ask?

As an ex Microsoft employee over 10 years ago I remember a staff presentation by Bill Gates where he pitched the vision "Information at your fingertips". This was powerful stuff and inspired a sense that we must innovate and lead in all things "information". If you are still caught under this spell then I can see why you just have to crack search - how else can you live up to this vision. You can’t possibly admit you don’t have “the information at your fingertips”.

Or can you? I see the new mission for Microsoft is "We are committed long term to the mission of helping our customers realize their full potential. Just as we constantly update and improve our products, we want to continually evolve our company to be in the best position to accelerate new technologies as they emerge and to better serve our customers". Maybe under this you can just buy Yahoo and offer that as a solution to “better serve” your customers. After all Microsoft has a strong track record of partnerships with solution providers – as you say "why not just buy Yahoo and offer Yahoo to "serve your customers".

By: rej

rej — Tue, 08 May 2007 06:36:15 +0000

John, I wonder why you are so hopeful to help the dying evil to live?