OK, who didn’t see that one coming? It was only a matter of time before someone bought into Facebook. Microsoft, ever mindful of its competitor Google, has bought in and picked up the exclusive advertising rights. That will give the Redmond company a captive audience of 50 million users.
From the Washington Post:
Facebook, which is second to MySpace among social networking sites, in recent months has become a hot property as a magnet for Internet advertisers. Google reportedly sought a similar deal with Facebook.
In 3 1/2 years, Facebook — a site that allows its users to exchange messages, share photos and showcase their network of online friends — has won an audience big enough to bring in $125 million in ad revenue, the estimate for this year, according to eMarketer, a market research firm.
The companies did not disclose details but said the deal values Facebook at $15 billion.
Apparently Google was also seeking a similar deal but, lost out in the end. Now, with this buy in it is not clear how much access the minority player will have to users personal information.
[tags]Microsoft Buys Facebook, Facebook Partners, Microsoft, Facebook[/tags]