Google cries foul over Microsoft’s Yahoo bid

Google cries foul over Microsoft’s Yahoo bid

The proposed Microsoft takeover takeover of Yahoo! has prompted an “uncharacteristically forthright” blog post from the head of Google’s legal department.

Microsoft’s $44.6bn bid for Yahoo raises “troubling questions” about the future of the internet, Google has warned. A takeover would also create a business with an “overwhelming share” of online communications services of web-based email and instant messaging, David Drummond, Google’s chief legal officer wrote in an uncharacteristically forthright post on the official Google blog last night.

I expect as a virtual monopoly itself Google would have a very clear understanding of some of the issues associated with owning an “overwhelming share” of (various) online services.

I’m still curious to know exactly what sort of impact a Microsoft powered Yahoo! search engine though would have on Google search though.

Do you think it would seriously gain even 20 per cent market share – and that’s assuming Microsoft would do the obvious and make Yahoo! the default search engine in future versions of Internet Explorer – such is the sheer dominance of Google?