After more than two years of intense pursuit, Microsoft yesterday struck a deal with Yahoo that makes the software group the most credible threat to Google's dominance in the search business.
Under the terms of the 10-year alliance, Microsoft will run the technology behind both its own Bing search engine and Yahoo's search results, while Yahoo will handle the direct sales of sponsored advertising.
In essence, the wealthier Microsoft will shoulder most of the costs of investing in search, freeing Yahoo to focus on building its audience and attracting advertisers. Yahoo said it expected the savings in the agreement to produce an additional $275m in cash flow.