Microsoft Makes Major Bid For Yahoo

$44.6 Billion Offer Comes As Search Engine Giant Prepares For Layoffs

(CBS/AP)  Microsoft Corp. offered to buy search engine operator Yahoo Inc. for $44.6 billion in cash and stock in a move to boost its competitive edge in the online services market.

Microsoft bid $31 per share for Yahoo, representing a 62 percent premium to Yahoo's closing stock price Thursday.

"We see this announcement as the company’s next major milestone to embrace online services," Steve Ballmer, Microsoft's chief executive officer, said on a conference call this morning.

The unexpected announcement Friday comes as Yahoo and Microsoft have fallen behind Google in the race to capture online advertising dollars. The deal could also give lift to the entire technology market.

"The Windows experience needs to increasingly embrace the Internet," Ballmer said. "When you combine the strengths of our two companies, the results will be very competitive."

Microsoft officials noted that Google, which has about 75 percent worldwide market share in the online search business, is prevented by antitrust laws from acquiring Yahoo itself, and that the online advertising industry - which today stands at more than $40 billion - is forecast to reach $80 billion in the next three years.

"Today the market in increasingly dominated by one player," said Kevin Johnson, president of Microsoft's Platforms & Services Division. "By combining assets of Microsoft and Yahoo, the industry will be better served."

"Microsoft didn't leave any doubt that one of the reasons for the acquisition is to better compete with Google," said CBS News technology analyst Larry Magid. "Yahoo has been struggling lately and Microsoft has never had a dominant online product. Perhaps by combining forces, they can give Google the competition that it now lacks."

If the deal goes through, analysts expect scrutiny from Congress, Justice and other enforcement agencies, but they say any concerns about search engine or online advertising market power may not be significant enough to stop the transaction.

The Justice Department on Friday said it is "interested" in reviewing antitrust issues associated with Microsoft's bid.

"The antitrust division would be interested in looking at the competitive effects of the transaction," said Justice Department spokeswoman Gina Talamona. [See more on anti-trust issues below]

In a letter to Yahoo's board of directors, Ballmer said the world's biggest software company had been told a year ago that the Yahoo board felt it was not the right time to enter into discussions regarding a deal.

"According to that letter, the principal reason for this view was the Yahoo board's confidence in the 'potential upside' if management successfully executed on a reformulated strategy based on certain operational initiatives, such as Project Panama, and a significant organizational realignment."

"A year has gone by, and the competitive situation has not improved," Ballmer added.

Under terms of the proposed deal, Yahoo shareholders could choose to receive cash or Microsoft common shares, with the total purchase consisting of 50 percent each cash and stock.

Microsoft said it sees at least $1 billion cost savings generated by the merger, and intends to offer significant retention packages to Yahoo engineers, key leaders and employees. The software giant said it believes the takeover would receive regulatory clearance and close in the second half of 2008.

Ballmer said Microsoft expects Yahoo's board will review its proposal, but "reserves the right to pursue all necessary steps to ensure that Yahoo's shareholders are provided with the opportunity to realize the value inherent in our proposal."

Ray Ozzie, Microsoft's chief software architect, said joining the R&D capabilities of the two companies together would bring "a broad range of experience to our customers that neither could have achieved on our own."

The company is targeting the second half of calendar year 2008 for a close to the transaction.

Shares of Yahoo added $8.67, or 45 percent, to $27.85 in morning trading, while Microsoft fell $1.88, or 5.8 percent, to $30.72.

The announcement follows word on Thursday that Terry Semel stepped down as Yahoo's chairman, severing his ties 7-1/2 months after he resigned as chief executive under shareholder pressure. He had been criticized for failing to cash in on the Web advertising surge as effectively as main rival Google Inc.

Yahoo Inc.'s financial funk deepened at the end of 2007, prompting the slumping Internet icon to draw up plans to lay off as many as 1,000 workers.

The Sunnyvale, Calif.-based company disclosed the upcoming 7 percent reduction in its 14,300-employee work force Tuesday while reviewing a 23 percent drop in fourth-quarter profit and a cautious 2008 outlook. The bad news sent Yahoo shares skidding to their lowest levels in more than four years.

In a prepared statement, Yahoo Chief Executive Jerry Yang warned Wednesday of looming "headwinds," indicating that the company's tortuous turnaround efforts aren't likely to pay off this year.

"This is certainly coming at a good time for Yahoo," said Magid. "$44.6 billion has got to be looking pretty good right now."

While there were few specifics about what the merger would mean for each company's employees and shareholders, Microsoft officials proclaimed the deal would be good for both camps, though there was the intimation that its integration plan necessitated the "right amount of head count."

Yahoo shares dropped $2.09, or more than 10 percent, in extended trading Tuesday after finishing the regular session at $20.81, up 3 cents. The company's market value has plunged more than 50 percent since the end of 2005, wiping out $35 billion in shareholder wealth.

Yang, Yahoo's co-founder, took over as CEO seven months ago in an attempt to shake things up, but his overhaul hasn't impressed Wall Street so far. The mass firings represent Yang's most dramatic move yet.

Meanwhile, Microsoft last week forecast a rosy 2008 - despite broader economic worries - after it blew by Wall Street's expectations for a second consecutive quarter.

Experts Expect Government Approval

Keith Hylton, a professor of antitrust law at Boston University, said Google's success in online search and advertising means a combined Microsoft-Yahoo would have significant competition.

"The fact that Google dominates this business will be a big factor in their (Microsoft's) favor in trying to get this approved by the regulators," Hylton said.

A spokesman from the Federal Trade Commission, which in December approved Google Inc.'s $3.1 billion purchase of online advertising company DoubleClick Inc., declined to comment. That deal still faces antitrust scrutiny in Europe.

A federal judge this week extended by 18 months court oversight of Microsoft's market power, which began in 2002 after a landmark antitrust settlement. Hylton said Justice has been relatively lenient with Microsoft, compared to state attorneys general.

It was a group of states that pushed for the extension of court oversight of the software giant, while Justice officials said the 2002 antitrust settlement had largely served its purpose and should expire.

"If this deal goes through, there will be a lot of very close scrutiny ... there appears to be lots of overlap," said Harry First, a professor at New York University's School of Law. "It's complicated and very big, and a lot of enforcement agencies will be interested."

Sen. Herb Kohl, D-Wis., chairman of the Senate antitrust subcommittee, said the same issues that prompted lawmakers to review the Google-DoubleClick deal exist in a potential Microsoft-Yahoo combination, including examining how it affects consumers, advertisers and businesses "who increasingly use the Internet for their news, commerce and entertainment."

If Yahoo accepts Microsoft's offer, the subcommittee expects to hold hearings to "explore the competitive and privacy implications of the deal," Kohl said.

[ontheleft]

Under Bush there has been zero antitrust enforcement. The buyout should not be allowed, but it will sail through.

[ontheleft]

I wanted to add, can''t Microsoft do anything well on its own? For all the money it makes it''s the most unimaginative company ever.

[zlicdic]

Hi plusbcather: I''m a hetero-male Republican senator from Arizon who likes to lie and be lied to. I want my a$$ whipped badly in November. Interested? Come to Denver airport mens room, stall #6 and tap toes to identify.

[zlicdic]

Isn''t 44 billion about half of Gates'' net worth?

[antoniof123]

Finally get rid of that worthless company. I am so glad that Microsoft is buying them.

For you nuts out there, if you wer a Microsoft employee working for Bill Gates you would not be rich like worth millions. What nut job company do you know of besides great ones that it happens too. Very few so I am glad to see that the little guy who works for Yahoo may get to keep his job and get rid of the rich CEO''s that destroyed Yahoo.

Go Microsoft!

[walt1944-2009]

The Great Emperor Bush II is pleased over the news that the huge monopoly of Microsoft wants to gobble up Yahoo.

This falls perfectly into the Great Emperor''s strategy of doing away with competition which has been fostered by the evil, cowardly Progressive Liberals, and replace competition with huge monopolies making it possible for these monopolies to charge whatever prices they want and, since the consumer would have no other place to go to these these products or services, the consumer would have to pay them or go without.

This "Wal-Mart economic philosphy" has worked effectively for Wal-Mart and appears to be working for other huge companies as well, such as Walgreens, AT&T, Microsoft, electric and natural gas companies, and, of course, BIG OIL!

There is, however, an old saying which goes: The BIGGER they are, the harder they fall!!!

SIG HEIL, BUSH!!!!

[mcv57]

The Great, great depression is on stand-by (after Bush leaves office). Corporate monopoly will spawn less competition and higher prices, unemployment will explode, police and judicial systems will spill-over into organized crime, and people will starve in the U.S.

All sounds fantical??? Katrina was a preface to social break-down, and the example of worthless government intervention. IT IS VERY REAL, PEOPLE!

[nolalou]

walt1944, I''m no fan of President Bush, but your so-called argument is NUTS! There are plenty of real reasons to oppose Bush and his policies, without resorting to nonsense like yours!

[j_flood]

I''ll wait and see what reaction there is to this in the EU - the EU doesn''t take a b*lls**t from Microsoft. Can you imagine only 2 real car makers in the world? Two kinds of bread, two kinds of anything. My gut reaction is that this purchase isn''t good for me and you.

[realtalk5950]

Great. Now we are going to have "MS-YAHOO!"...you know, between Walmart, Microsoft, and McDonald''s I think the three pretty much have a monopoly on the planet taken care of...

[speakinup]

I think if MS buys yahoo, I''ll switch to google.

It would be great to see the 800 gorilla eat a 45 billion dollar albatross! That''d be YAHOOooooo alright!








"Ray Ozzie, Microsoft''s chief software architect, said joining the R&D capabilities of the two companies together would bring "a broad range of experience to our customers that neither could have achieved on our own."




Yeah, funny how a monopoly can do that for you isn''t it, Ozzie.

[missingamerica]

If you''ve been watching Microsoft''s programming languages, office tools, and operating systems evolve towards entropy, it isn''t shocking to see Microsoft having to reach outside their company for new ideas that work.

In a word, they''ve been getting "bureaucratic" across the board.

The question, though: Is Yahoo''s creativity layer vibrant enough to resist the strangling arms of an increasingly bureaucratic octopus?

[ontheleft]

walt1944, I''''m no fan of President Bush, but your so-called argument is NUTS! There are plenty of real reasons to oppose Bush and his policies, without resorting to nonsense like yours!

Posted by nolalou at 09:53 AM : Feb 01, 2008

Under Bush, there has been no enforcement of the antitrust laws. So yes, it''s a Bush policy since he''s the one who appoints the people who are "supposed" to enforce them. Like the immigration laws, certain laws are not enforced under Bush by choice. Again, it''s called a Bush policy.

[Renegade.Rivers]

Exxon Mobile posted a record 40.6 billion last year, (more like 80 billion if truth be told), and Microsoft is offering 44.6 billion for Yahoo? All this, while you and I sweat the bullets from month to month wondering if the bottom is going to fall out from under the economy, and if we had better hunker down for a recession, or latch the shutters for a depression.

People wake up, this is just short of treason. Why should "big oil" run the world, and run the world they are, into the ground, no pun intended. I tell you these big companies are sucking the money out of the poor man''s pockets faster than a new Orick. The evil thats running this world, thinks they are invincible, but I can tell you there are a lot more good people than there are evil, and somewhere along the line its all going to come to a head, and the evil scoundrels are going to find out they weren''t as invincible as they thought they were. Of course, thats counting on a lot of good people waking up, ........ I''m waiting!

[salty1954]

MS sucks and Yahoo sucks.

suck + suck = suck.

It''s the New World Order, baby.

Bush is certainly to blame for the financial ruin that was once America.
You fascist morons who are still defending Bush, wake up!

[pkelly79]

Two kinds of what...? Microsoft & Yahoo are both very diverse companies offering a wide range of products and services across a multitude of consumer and commercial markets. Google, not Microsoft, is the monopoly in the internet search market. Under this deal Google might actually have some competition. Yahoo has been getting its *** handed to it in the market for years, but obviously has many great things going for it. You don''t want Microsoft to buy Yahoo...who else has $44B in cash & stock laying around? I think this deal is exciting & can''t wait to see what interesting services come about. If you''re looking for a real enemy check out the Exxon story...

[ontheleft]

"Of course, thats counting on a lot of good people waking up, ........ I''''m waiting!

Posted by renrivers at 11:22 AM "

I think it''s going to take a depression and rioting in the streets to wake people up. I don''t think that''s going to happen. It might though.

[sevenveils]

Micro$oft is delving deeper into its already world domination of digital information.
It''s predatory marketing and Scientology like litigious practices has stifled far more creative and superior software products. Apple exists today only because Micro$oft needs a puppet competitor. Google exists because Micro$oft was a sleep at the wheel with the internet. At that time is was still pushing to control the masses internet experience by forcing everyone through MSN and now Microsoft Live. It still forces everyone that uses its internet products to have a unique Identification, the NUMBER OF THE BEAST, so to speak.

Open Source Software is how the computer community started. Open Source Software is the only way to keep MS from controlling every digital aspect of peoples lives, including streaming movies, music, and news onto TVs. That is why today MS is vigorously fighting Open Source Software from every possible angle, illegally in many instances; but hey, who has the most dollars and biggest stable of lawyers for court battles in the business? It is MicroSquash.

[republic1776]

We will all for for Microsoft.
This is getting out of hand.
A Corporation has the power to buy and sell countries.
PLUS, Microsoft does NOT really care about making the best OS. They destory companies and jack-up the technology. As Bill put it... "People don''t want bug fixes; features is what they want. There is no money fixing bugs"

[republic1776]

Why does the wacky left that "Big Oil" makes less per gallon than the Federal Government.
The Government makes DOUBLE for doing NOTHING! ZERO WORK, ZERO PRODUCT!

[bobnjersey]

["The Windows experience needs to increasingly embrace the Internet," Ballmer said. "When you combine the strengths of our two companies, the results will be very competitive." ]

hey steve ... is your $h!t going to work any better after you spend $44 billion?

uh ha ... i didn''t think so.

[bobnjersey]

[As Bill put it... "People don''''t want bug fixes; features is what they want. There is no money fixing bugs"]
[Posted by republic1776 at 11:52 AM : Feb 01, 2008]

that attitude exists because there''s no liability for NOT fixing the bugs ... for which there should be.

[bigmojobone]

MS sucks and Yahoo sucks. suck + suck = suck.
Posted by ELECTROFEX at 12:14 PM : Feb 01, 2008

ELECTRFLEX, what type of Computer& OS are you using to spew your blather on this blog?

[michellem99-2009]

I use MSN,YAHOO,GOOGLE. Apple was before MS Windows..Vista that gets an F for FUNKING OUT, They want Yahoo..Who be next..I say they need to deal with a problem that need to be adderssed and force computer compaties to step up to the plate and give us the MS Windsows OS sofeware and not an image disc..I battled Dell on this for a year of my tech sopport ..got no where..That what MS should be doing..Not buying every thing in sight.

[hypnotoad72]

Didn''t Bill recently say he wanted to practice "creative capitalism" around the world, and to speed up the process? (and why more quickly? If I were to put on a tinfoil hat, I might asinine conjure the notion he''s trying to break the United States, but that wouldn''t help him very much. The $3 Windows+Office licenses he sells can''t get him very far in the end?)

And, yeah, that is asinine because he''s done too much to prove the opposite.

But if capitalism means competition, surely buying out the competition is a non-sequitur?

[antizion]

Yeah... What America really needs is another monopoly. Or a bigger one. Anti-trust suit uncle sam? Didn''t think so. It will make it so much easier for the NSA''s illegal spy program to expand.

[antizion]

"Why does the wacky left that "Big Oil" makes less per gallon than the Federal Government.
The Government makes DOUBLE for doing NOTHING! ZERO WORK, ZERO PRODUCT!" - Posted by republic1776

Did you include all the tax rebates the oil companies take from the tax payers in corporate welfare? Didn''t think so.

The government supplies the oil companies with a trillion dollars worth of blood money to steal Iraqi oil for Israel and you say the government does not supply a produce?

1 million dead Iraqis, almost 4000 dead military IS a product that they get from the tax payer. It is your children''s blood. What is that worth?

[rikedoid]

Microsoft just missed with the right name for Vista. It should have been called "Vega", after that pos car.

There''s still time for them to use it on a new and improved search engine though. "Microsoft Vega Search". If they get hold of Yahoo!, it will work as well as the rest of their stuff and should be named accordingly.

I won''t even touch on what lack of competition accomplishes in a free market economy...

[bobnjersey]

[They should focus on getting this 64 bit version of Vista working right, so that when 3 gigs isn''''t enough for everyone they have an operating system that actually works.]
[Posted by george2221 at 02:52 PM : Feb 01, 2008]

the next version will resolve that issue ... they''re working on it now.

[bobnjersey]

[But if capitalism means competition, surely buying out the competition is a non-sequitur?
[Posted by hypnotoad72 at 12:57 PM : Feb 01, 2008]

creative capitalism means selling products that are supposed to be tools that help you solve problems ... except they themselves become the problems ... and ms has the ''tools'' to solve it ... a $295/incident support fee.

creative capitalism means not having to bear any responsibility for any of this ... directly or indirectly ... as per their license agreement.

what other industry can do this ... sell garbage ... take no responsibility for it ... and charge you more to assist in making it something you can barely use?

[glidescube]

Wow that beats my bid. I offered $1.95!

[hypnotoad72]

creative capitalism means selling products that are supposed to be tools that help you solve problems ... except they themselves become the problems ... and ms has the ''''tools'''' to solve it ... a $295/incident support fee.

creative capitalism means not having to bear any responsibility for any of this ... directly or indirectly ... as per their license agreement.

what other industry can do this ... sell garbage ... take no responsibility for it ... and charge you more to assist in making it something you can barely use?

Posted by bobnjersey
---------------------

Thanks much for your response.

The bonus is, looking at where things _appear_ to be going, they are eliminating the concept of support. Which means, one has to use the tools to make something others want; not just keep them patched together. Not a bad thing as many techs spend their lives fixing rubbish products and not having time left to use said tools to make a creative product or service TO sell others.

In ways, this shake-up of the US economy, right now, isn''t such a bad thing. I just hope there''s a greater good at the end of the day.

[flash2368]

ENOUGH!! I cannot imagine that Microsoft would be allowed to close such a deal. Their domination of the PC has resulted in the miserable monopolistic situation we have in the computer industry today. To all of you who look up to Microsoft as a beacon of capitalism..all I can tell you is that you are all sheep who are eager for another good shearing.

[denn034]

Free enterprise at it''s finest! This can only help to strengthen the jobs of it''s employees and that''s a good thing. Go Microsoft!

[bobnjersey]

[Which means, one has to use the tools to make something others want; not just keep them patched together. Not a bad thing as many techs spend their lives fixing rubbish products and not having time left to use said tools to make a creative product or service TO sell others.]
[Posted by hypnotoad72 at 04:12 PM : Feb 01, 2008]

i was speaking of the ms products as the ''tools'' that become the problems ... then they have more ''tools'' to sell to you to fix the first ''tool'' they sold.

it''s a scam ... and their lack of liability for their buggy products allows them to continue it.

the day they have liability for the products they sell ... and the inefficiencies and exploits they produce ... will be the first day they take these issues seriously.

[speakinup]

"Yahoo is yet another Fascist News organization. YOu are obviously some Southern White Male Fascist to make such an ibeclic statement in support of a fascist news orgainization, similar to the Fascist OXymoron channel. Posted by neoconism




Who peed your corn flakes neoconism ? I''ve never noticed this - dang, I start to use them more often. Thanks for the tip.

[toolmangler-2009]

To all of you who look up to Microsoft as a beacon of capitalism..all I can tell you is that you are all sheep who are eager for another good shearing.

Posted by flash2368 at 04:24 PM : Feb 01, 2008



If Steve Jobs had not tried to corner the computer market himself, Microsoft would not have the clout it does today, I have been in this industry from the ''get-go'' and watched as market manipulators like RadioShack (Tandy), Apple and a host of others all tried to go to the "you''ve got to buy it from me" mindset for replacement parts. I have had many different computers from Heathkit to IBM and watched as Bill Gates made the world sit back and take notice because he made use of a simple form of "Enlightened Self Interest" and ''Open sourced'' the majority of his programming code so that everybody could write programs themselves. You would do well to "kwitchurbitchin" and roll up your sleeves (metaphorically) to grab and growl with the rest of us. (Like Monk says, "Its a jungle out there")

[dan_shields-2009]

i use Yahoo! for everything, every day. MSN and Google never really appealed to me at all, personally i think Google and MSN are boring and Yahoo is way more interactive with their e-mail and and news stuff. i hope Yahoo turns around and kicks the *** out of Google...look at Pepsi..they went bankrupt 3 times before they stomped on Coke..i have much faith in Yahoo

[sophielhu]

i use Yahoo! for everything, every day. MSN and Google never really appealed to me at all, personally i think Google and MSN are boring and Yahoo is way more interactive with their e-mail and and news stuff.
----------------------------------------
Internet is a good place to share information and meet friends. I recently found a nice web site called pubspa.com where you can meet friends who have same interest in beauty care, massage, wellness and spa treatment. You can also share blog, video, game, photos, etc with people from all over the world. Unlike other online dating sites where you have to pay membership fee, this site is totally free. I already made several interesting friends there.

[mcv57]

Let the MEGA MERGER GAMES begin, at the forefront we have fake humanitian, private information mongo, and government puppet, Bill Gates.

[brianbwb-2009]

Long live piracy, it is the only weapon we have. The hackers are your true heroes, and time will prove it.

[ms38654ob]

Those poor SOB''s at Yahoo must be polishing up their resumes. Microsoft is the enemy, everyone at Google, Apple and Yahoo feel that and would probably quit wholesale if this merger went through.

I hope Yahoo sticks to its independence.

Down with Microsoft, the evil empire...

[hypnotoad72]

Long live piracy, it is the only weapon we have. The hackers are your true heroes, and time will prove it.

Posted by brianbwb
-------------------

http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2007/07/23/100134488/index.htm

Microsoft doesn''t seem to mind. W W t BSA D?

And to george2221, the macaddict, step away from the toy. Reality is not what you speak...

[hypnotoad72]

Long live piracy, it is the only weapon we have. The hackers are your true heroes, and time will prove it.

Posted by brianbwb
-------------------

http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2007/07/23/100134488/index.htm

Microsoft doesn''t seem to mind. W W t BSA D?

And to george2221, the macaddict, step away from the toy. Reality is not what you speak...

[kaelinda]

Sophielhu said "Bill Gates, Steve Ballmer did NOT have an operating system for IBM. They bought it from another local company for $50,000. They did NOT create one: they bought it."

You don''t know what you''re talking about. I knew Bill Gates when he was in his early 20s, who had just created the OS used by the Commodore PET. I know he did that because I worked for Commodore. He also wrote the OS for the TRS-80. Later, In July 1980, IBM representatives met for the first time with Bill Gates to talk about writing an operating system for IBM''s new hush-hush personal computer. Gates sent them somewhere else, but they didn''t like that company and came back to Bill. And Bill insisted that Microsoft retain the copyright to the OS.

You can research this on the internet if you like - but you shouldn''t go around spreading lies about people who created and run a company you don''t like.

I don''t like Microsoft either, and I like Yahoo even less. Yahoo ruined GeoCities and Webrings, and it learned not to do that again before it took over e-groups. They''ll ruin each other!

[gmond]

Micrahoosoft

[tomtomasters]

Why doesn''t Gates come out and tell the truth? Really he would love to take over Google, but Google won''t let him, and Yahoo is is other choice, a slipping from the top, with Microsoft hedging bids to boost Yahoo and Microsoft shares. Gates would be better off trying a take over of The Carlyle Group, or Halliburton, and reeling in the out of control military establishment. Seems to me people would appreciate that and that would help Microsoft on a humanitarian level. Once he took over these Defense Industries he could downsize them, which would make them more profitable. Bill Gates is a strange dude, in my opinion, and one of the Corporate Pirates in America. They make him out to be so great, when in fact he is nothing but a slightly improved TV set. Turn the channel everyone. Let''s watch MicroHard instead, where Micosoft buys out the military establishment, impeaches Bush and Cheney, and changes the image of not only Microsoft, but the United States. Better think hard Bill instead of soft. Poor Americans made you, not you.

[boatdocster]

Kaelinda

Read your history!!!

"As for an operating system (OS) for the new computers, since Microsoft had never written an operating system before, Gates had suggested that IBM investigate an OS called CP/M (Control Program for Microcomputers), written by Gary Kildall of Digital Research. Kindall had his Ph.D. in computers and had written the most successful operating system of the time, selling over 600,000 copies of CP/M, his OS set the standard at that time."

The "Microsoft Disk Operating System" or MS-DOS was based on QDOS, the "Quick and Dirty Operating System" written by Tim Paterson of Seattle Computer Products, for their prototype Intel 8086 based computer.

QDOS was based on Gary Kildall''s CP/M, Paterson had bought a CP/M manual and used it as the basis to write his operating system in six weeks, QDOS was different enough from CP/M to be considered legal.

Microsoft bought the rights to QDOS for $50,000, keeping the IBM deal a secret from Seattle Computer Products. "

[jtinsv]

The problem with both of these companies is they haven''t innovated in almost ten years. If you want to try a real search engine go to ManagedQ.com

They''re the best chance at knocking some fear into the big guys including Google.

[bobnjersey]

[Later, In July 1980, IBM representatives met for the first time with Bill Gates to talk about writing an operating system for IBM''''s new hush-hush personal computer. Gates sent them somewhere else, but they didn''''t like that company and came back to Bill. And Bill insisted that Microsoft retain the copyright to the OS ... You can research this on the internet if you like - but you shouldn''''t go around spreading lies about people who created and run a company you don''''t like. ]
[Posted by Kaelinda at 05:55 PM : Feb 02, 2008]

the first versions of dos for the intel processor were originally developed by a guy by the name of gary kildahl ... and the os was known as ''cpm''. gates & co basically stole that code from mr kildahl and sold it to ibm.