$ cat ./records/microsoft-buys-aquantive-for-6-3-billion-later-a-near-total-write-2007.txt
Microsoft buys aQuantive for $6.3 billion — later a near-total write-off
[RECORD.TXT] · cat --full
In 2007 Microsoft made what was then its largest-ever acquisition, buying digital-advertising firm aQuantive for about $6.3 billion in an all-cash deal meant to help it compete with Google in online ads. The bet largely failed: Microsoft's online-advertising business kept losing money, and in 2012 the company wrote down roughly $6.2 billion of the acquisition's value — nearly the entire purchase price — one of the biggest write-offs in its history. The episode underscored how hard it was for Microsoft to crack Google's dominance in search advertising.
Source: https://www.geekwire.com/2012/writedown-microsoft-squandered-62b-purchase-ad-giant-aquantive/
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