Microsoft Pays $6B for Online Ad Company

Microsoft Corp., not wanting to get left behind rivals in an online advertising boom, agreed to pay $6 billion in cash to acquire aQuantive Inc. on Friday, a leading agency for Internet ads which also has powerful technology that serves display and banner ads to other Web sites.

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Microsoft to Buy AQuantive for $6B

Microsoft Corp. said Friday it will buy online advertising firm aQuantive Inc. for about $6 billion in cash, paying a premium to catch up with major ad deals by its competitors over the last six weeks. Shares of aQuantive soared more than 77 percent.

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Microsoft has been investing heavily in advertising, including a $6 billion acquisition of aQuantive that should close this quarter, a new top ad exec at the company, and a new applied search and advertising research group.

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If Microsoft pulls a Jennifer Willbanks — the Georgia bride who made headlines after fleeing the altar and going missing in 2005 — and backs out of its deal to acquire online advertising firm aQuantive, it will cost the company a cool half-billion dollars.

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Microsoft Corp.'s plan to buy AQuantive Inc. for $6 billion increases the likelihood that the software maker will also buy Yahoo! Inc., Goldman Sachs Group Inc. analyst Anthony Noto said today.

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