Search Engines & eCommerce Frank Ross on 20 Apr 2008 03:16 pm
Yahoo Stores and Microsoft Bids
Morale must be pretty low at Yahoo! these days. Takeover bids, job cuts, and desperate measures - like pairing with Google for ad serving - make it seem like dark days for the internet pioneer company. Very few people are talking about Yahoo! stores in this deal. Yahoo! Stores are a well oiled ecommerce engine that few other companies can match. Google has nothing like them and neither does Microsoft. Microsoft sort of tried that a few years ago with their Microsoft Online Small Business Services but it went nowhere.
Yahoo! Stores provide a sizeable chunk of the niche ecommerce market - everything from foam earplugs to fishing tackle to piano sheet music to wedding favors. It would seem that this would provide value to Microsoft if they do indeed end up acquiring Yahoo! As far as I know, Yahoo! is the single largest eCommerce hosting provider and that’s got to count for something. If MS does take over will they recognize that as value or will they shutter it like they did with their Online Small Business Services?