Google Concerned for Yahoo! and Not Impressed With Microsoft

So what's the opinion of the worlds biggest search engine on the teaming up of the second and third biggest search engines? We are worried, but not just for ourselves!

In a recent interview with CNBC, Google CEO Eric Schmidt admitted that they are concerned at the proposed takeover of Yahoo! by Microsoft primarily because there is the potential for Microsoft to use the merger for evil rather than good. "We've primarily been concerned about the possibility of a Microsoft acquisition of Yahoo because of Microsoft's history and because the assets that Yahoo has are quite valuable. And we actually think that in the wrong hands, they could be used in the wrong way" Schmidt said.

So just what impact will this merger have on Google? Schmidt adds that this is a widely discussed topic both in the outside community and internally at Google "A lot of people debate this. There's a big debate within the company. People say, on the one hand, that we stay focused, which of course, we're very focused, while they're doing their maneuver. On the other hand, people are concerned about the history, as I mentioned, and the possibility of merger. So I don't think we really know yet. We debate it all the time."

Check out the interview transcript and video here.

The main concern for Google is that if the merger is successful, then it is really going to be a blow to consumers. "If they go ahead and the merger's ultimately successful, it would be possible for Microsoft to integrate some of the properties and essentially eliminate consumer choice, particularly in electronic mail, instant messaging, the things where they have 80 or 90 percent market share, and that's a sweet spot for Microsoft in its ability to eliminate choice" said Schmidt.

So I guess we will have to wait and see if Google comes to the rescue of Yahoo!

Posted by Courtney Mills at 12:54 AM GMT