Both Microsoft and Yahoo! have announced that they now have the clearance to implement their proposed search deal where Microsoft will power Yahoo! Search and search ads. They have been given "unrestricted" clearance from both the European Commission and the U.S Department of Justice to proceed with the merger. The implementation is underway and will involve transitioning Yahoo!’s algorithmic and paid search platforms to Microsoft, with Yahoo! becoming the exclusive relationship sales force for both companies’ premium search advertisers globally. Once the transition is completed, the companies’ aim to have a unified search marketplace that will deliver improved innovation for consumers, better volume and efficiency for advertisers and better monetization opportunities for web publishers through a platform that contains a larger pool of search queries. The transition is expected to be completed by early 2012. |
