Microsoft, Yahoo and the End of Antitrust

The total lack of interest in antitrust considerations is what jumps out at me this morning. If the Justice Department's antitrust division was alive, we'd at least be wondering this morning if they'd give the deal their blessing. To the extent there's any concern at all, it's about the European Union and its antitrust case against Microsoft and Internet Explorer being bundled with Windows. (Sounds almost quaint these days.) I don't see the antitrust problem off hand. Yahoo is internet and Microsoft dumped Expedia and is backing out of MSNBC so it's not like it has a huge e-commerce component even with its stake in Facebook or Double Click purchase. But the fact that no one cares shows how far we've come from the days of Joel Klein and Clinton's antitrust team. Yes, DOJ, when asked, this morning said, through a spokesperson, that they were "interested" in the effects of the merger. But does anyone think Michael Mukasey and DOJ will derail this deal?

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Comments

[ProudLiberalDemocrat]

Dear Mr. Cooper,

I have great respect for your professionalism. But you are on the wrong side of this arguement.

Google has 65% of internet search, they are the giant that should be under scrutiny by the Dept. of Justice.

Micrsoft's potential acquisition of Yahoo at least has the potential to create some competition for Google.

And would we be having this discussion if IBM had purchased Microsoft when it had the chance. Then we'd be trying to break-up IBM.

Ya'know, I am often struck by those that want to limit the size of our largest corporations. For instance, when Exxon reports record profits and folks want to create a special tax - I have to ask, which company should be the largest and most profitable?

Let's use a different metric - Google has a market cap of $200B and employs 16,000 people. Microsoft has market cap of $300B and employs 80,000 people. I'll praise the company that creates more jobs.

[realitytrumpsbull]

Here's a mental 'cartoon' for you, Pvt. Halliburton with a Microsoft shoulder patch...

[ReasonIsMyReligion]

You're expecting checks and balances from THIS guvmint?

Zoiks!

[zannamar]

We've been antitrust for years. Why in america do we have a choice of only 5-6 cell phone providers but in europe there are 30-40? Radio is now owned buy Clear channel. And don't even let me get into Cable providers and new organizations

[joebaggadonuts]

Antitrust???? Dat's Regulat'n Business, ain't it? We cain't have dat kin we?

[realitytrumpsbull]

Right now in the middle east it looks like someone is in the process of killing off the internet....hmmm....hmmm....'information technology'....what KIND of information? Hmmm....

[RabidRightRebel]

Anti-trust in the U.S. is now only concerned about efficiency. It does not care how much consumers are charged, only that the goods or service are produced in the most cost effective manner. If huge multi-national firms make monoploy profits as a result so much the better as it shows value has been created. As for consumers if they buy the product they must value it as least as much as they pay for it so they have no right to complain.
So much for Department of Justice it should be renamed the Department of Efficiency.

[glitzqueen]

Just what I was thinking. The way things stand now, there's an open invitation for anybody to buy anything in this country.

We've seen bleak results of that in terms of private equity takeovers and now the sovereign wealth funds are on the loose, too. While it's especially dangerous when any media outlets are involved, encroachment on Internet news by the grillionaires scares me even more (this being our last bastion of independent journalism).