CEO Watch Rupert Murdoch and Tom Glocer support Microsoft-Yahoo merger
Two media titans, Rupert Murdoch News Corp's CEO and Tom Glocer, the head of Thompson Reuters, said they support a partnership between computer giant Microsoft and Internet giant Yahoo!, after a deal between the two companies fell through in April. "I think they need each other," Glocer said at All Things Digital media conference organized by The Wall Street Journal. "I think it makes a lot of sense. One way or another, I'd be surprised if there wasn't some way to make that happen."
For his part, Murdoch said he could not understand why the deal was aborted, but noted that Yahoo! founder Jerry Yang is "emotional about his company."
"Microsoft came up with a price, which the vast majority of the shareholders said 'give me quick,' he managed to hold them off. And Microsoft, who is not used to buying big things, they backed off," he said.
"They will try to find some other way to do things, buy search," Rupert added.
Murdoch also said he would not be surprised by a deal between Yahoo! and search giant Google, "but there is a huge regulatory risk for everybody."
Microsoft says it ceased takeover talks in late April after it raised its February 1 bid of 44.6 billion dollars by three billion dollars and Yahoo's board still wanted more.
