June 18 - 3:30pm EDT   Microsoft should divert some of its attention away from Google and concentrate on Apple, argues the Wall Street Journal. Although Microsoft faces stiff competition from Google, particularly after the latter's deals with DoubleClick and Yahoo, Apple is said to be rapidly encroaching on territory once held sacred, such as the smartphone market. Apple has the attention of the American public whereas Microsoft does not, the Journal writes. Windows Mobile is used on a number of third-party smartphones, but these are already losing some ground to the iPhone. [full story]

April 4 - 10:05am EDT   Google today said it will sell off the search marketing portion of DoubleClick to ensure that its takeover bid goes through. Called Performics, the division is being split off by the search engine giant to convince users that the ads accompanying search results won't be influenced by a conflict of interest. Advertisers will need to know that Google is objective and won't bias the ads it displays towards any one advertiser, according to DoubleClick's Tom Phillips. [full story]

March 11 - 3:50pm EDT   As a result of having received approval from the European Commission, Google is now formally announcing the completion of its acquisition of DoubleClick. The deal, worth $3.1 billion, will make the combined company the largest web advertiser in the world, beating even the combination of Microsoft and aQuantive. Google says it is now beginning to establish practical plans for the absorption of DoubleClick, which should be fully executed "by early April." [full story]

March 11 - 11:05am EDT   The European Commission today fully approved Google's proposed buyout of DoubleClick, all but ensuring the completion of the unprecedented move. The acquisition has been previously approved by the US Federal Trade Commission and received its blessing from the European agency in the belief that a combined Google/DoubleClick entity would not block out competing ad networks. As neither company has directly fought for similar business, the union of the two companies also won't create a monopoly, the Commission argues. [full story]

February 1 - 7:25am EST   Microsoft on Friday startled the industry by offering to buy Yahoo, potentially creating a major shift in online business. The proposal would see Microsoft pay $31 per share in a deal worth a total of $44.6 billion. This is 62 percent higher than Yahoo's closing stock price on Thursday, Microsoft observes. The latter argues that an acquisition would help both companies compete in web services and that about $1 billion per year could be saved between the two by eliminating overhead. [full story]

December 20 - 12:20pm EST   The US government's Federal Trade Commission has approved Google's acquisition of DoubleClick, the Associated Press reports. The two signed a deal in April worth $3.1 billion, but the purchase has since undergone much scrutiny, primarily due to worries that Google might develop a monopoly in online advertising. This opinion was voiced especially strongly by Microsoft and AT&T, despite the former of the two having bought the ad firm aQuantive. Microsoft is pushing heavily into areas currently ruled by Google, such as web search and mapping. [full story]