Is Yahoo enough for Microsoft to compete with Google ?

Microsoft's attempt to break Google's Internet dominance by buying up Yahoo has brought shock waves around the tech and financial industry. The takeover bid of US$45 billion would be the biggest the industry has ever seen. But the important question is, is Yahoo worth it ?

Market share
Google remains unshakable with about 60 percent (and growing) of the search engine market share. Microsoft and Yahoo combined would only bring their to about 15 percent. With such a large gap, Google may just feel a ripple, though that has not stop the Internet Giant from accusing the takeover as monopolistic.

Benefits
If the bid goes through, Microsoft will gain Yahoo's rich web applications (like Flickr, del.icio.us, community groups) to compete with the Google Apps. Furthermore, research and development by both companies could lead to the integration of Microsoft desktop application with Yahoo's web application. If that happens, Yahoo might just be worth the money.