Microsoft to buy LinkedIn for $26.2 billion
 

Microsoft has purchased the social networking service LinkedIn for $26.2 billion, equating to $196 per share. The network?s co-founder has described the deal as a ?re-founding moment? for the service.

The two companies have entered what they call a ?definitive agreement? that will see Jeff Weiner staying on as CEO of LinkedIn but will now be answerable to Microsoft boss Satya Nadella.

The deal, which is the biggest for Nadella while leading Microsoft, sees the company paying a 49.5 percent premium on LinkedIn's closing price on Friday, according to Bloomberg.

The transaction is expected to be closed out by the end of the year and was unanimously approved by the boards of directors of both LinkedIn and Microsoft.

It is also subject to approval by LinkedIn?s shareholders and will need certain regulatory approvals.

Continued https://www.rt.com/business/346478-m...edin-buy-deal/

I think they would've made more money if they kept the company. Always a risk though

This is stunning..... M$ has always wanted to break into social media, and this is a good fit for them...

What a waste, linkedin is complete joke of service. Tho it wont be first waste of money, they bought a shitty ad network for 6 billions previously .

Content is king

I just hope MS doesn't mess it up. I like LinkedIn.

They should buy Yahoo, and not LinkedIn :2 cents::warning

They have huge bughet so buying LInkedin is a great move to make more money

Another company under elite control :thumbsup

Complete joke of a service? I don't know if I would be so harsh to call it that. I have found linked in thousands of times better for recruiting skilled people or like-minded people to work with.

Head hunters use it all the time and to a great degree of success. Compared to other social networks, Linkedin is much easier to use for business reasons than any other social network I've tried.

Groups can also be pure gems for networking.

Is it worth 26 billion though? I don't know. But Linkedin is definitely a great tool for business'

Microsoft is trying to peddle Skype for Business and other SaaS on their cloud so acquiring LinkedIn may be a marketing move for their other services. Microsoft is certainly not a "Social Butterfly."

Why Microsoft hasn't already bought Slack is beyond me.

good cheddar

congrats to the winners.

It just builds a higher wall around the Silicon Valley / Redmond corridor. Once you're in you stay in, but if you're on the outside, it's harder to get get inside.

I get LinkedIn requests, but I can't look for old friends and view or add them.

especially with the wonderful job they did with skype

Well it does have use, but 26 billions is simply overkill. And linkedin is business only oriented so that is why is easier to use it then any other network. But what i find stupid there, is if you dont know a personal information of person to which you want to connect, or their e-mail , you cant connect with them.
Tho, i found a way to bypass that, if you see someone profile and they see your profile as well, then you can connect without knowing any info.
But what i trying to say here, if i already know someone e-mail , then what is a point of connecting over linkedin if i can simply send e-mail and ask whatever i want? It should work as a way to connecting with people which you dont know, and this way it works as connection with people which you already know.

insane price, facebook bought whatsapp for 19 billions

That's another waste of money. Beside that they also wasted money on oculus. Facebook only good buy was instagram, and that if i remember correctly was only 1 bil cost.

Agreed. Break the hold Google has.