Google passed on opportunity to buy Twitter: report
Google+ may or may not be a viable contender in the social networking space, but Google sure is committed to it.
How committed? According to venture capitalist Fred Wilson of Union Square Ventures, which owns a stake in Twitter, Google's passed up the opportunity to buy the popular microblogging social network several years ago.
Microsoft launches a new social network, but why?
When it comes to large tech companies and how they've fared with social networking, one could argue that Microsoft is the most successful.
Google has struggled to build viable homegrown social networks, Yahoo has largely done little of note, AOL purchased Bebo for $850m only to drive it into the ground, etc.
Microsoft's claim to success in the social space? A $240m investment in Facebook in 2007 which valued the social network at $15bn.
Yahoo's ten biggest mistakes
The resignation/termination of now-formerly new Yahoo CEO Scott Thompson amid a resume scandal was an embarrassing moment for the once-great internet giant.
For most companies, such a collosal blunder would represent a faux pas of the highest order, but that's not the case for Yahoo, it's just one more in a long line of mistakes.
Here are the ten biggest mistakes the company has made...
Yahoo CEO resigns amid resume scandal
When Scott Thompson decided to leave his post as President of PayPal to join Yahoo as CEO, it reportedly came as a shock to eBay CEO John Donahoe.
And it was a surprising move according to some industry observers.
After all, Thompson was ditching Ebay's fastest growing division to join a company that has been in decline.
It's a decision Thompson may regret for a long time.
Angry shareholders lash out at Yahoo, Nokia
Facebook employees and investors are set to cash in when the world's largest social network goes public later this month, but life at a public company isn't always easy.
Just ask the executives at Nokia and Yahoo.
Yahoo launches dashboard for small businesses
Yahoo may be putting 50 of its properties on the chopping block as new CEO Scott Thompson looks to make the once-dominant internet portal a little leaner and more nimble, but apparently small businesses are important enough to Yahoo that it will create new products.
Today, Yahoo did just that by launching an online dashboard designed specifically for small businesses.
The incredible shrinking Yahoo: infographic
Yahoo’s fall from grace is well documented, with its once dominant position in the search industry undermined by years of mismanagement.
New CEO Scott Thompson has a major task on his hands reversing the company’s declining fortunes, with his plans currently focused on boosting ad revenues and forging a closer alliance with Microsoft.
Facebook spends $550m on Microsoft patents
That didn't take long. Just two weeks after Microsoft announced that it had purchased a major collection of patents from AOL for $1bn, Microsoft has turned around and sold 650 patents to Facebook, which is being sued by Yahoo for patent infringment.
Microsoft will retain a license to the patents, and as part of the $550m deal, Facebook will also receive licenses for AOL patents that Microsoft did not offer up for sale.
Alibaba.com focuses on quality, sees net profits drop 25%
Doing the right thing long-term isn't always easy for companies. Just ask Alibaba.com, China's ecommerce giant.
Last quarter, the company made some strategic changes to its business model, and focused in on improving the quality of its marketplace. The result: slower growth which, combined with higher expenses, contributed to a 25% drop in net profit.
AOL sells patent collection to Microsoft for $1bn
The patent wars continue.
Just weeks after AOL CEO Tim Armstrong was quoted as referring to AOL's 800-plus patent portfolio as "beachfront property in East Hampton" and reports surfaced that the company was shopping the collection, AOL sealed a deal with Microsoft worth just over $1bn.
