Microsoft: aQuantive acquisition was not a success

Microsoft admits that one of its biggest acquisitions in the Internet sector has been unsuccessful. The software company will write off a total of $6.2 billion for this quarter on the advertising company aQuantive, acquired in 2007.

Microsoft bought aQuantive in 2007 for more than $6.3 billion. The company hoped to be able to compete with Google with the online advertising company. In 2007 there were already rumors that Microsoft had paid too much for the online advertiser. Now, five years later, Microsoft has had to write off almost as much as the software company paid for the advertising company.

The write-offs are likely to take a hefty bite out of Microsoft’s fourth-quarter earnings. In addition to the write-offs on aQuantive, Microsoft expects that the further growth of its online activities will be lower than previously expected. However, Microsoft does not disclose what the expected growth is.

Microsoft’s online division weighs heavily on the company’s profits. Each quarter, these businesses are responsible for a loss of approximately $500 million and the industry has lost $5 billion in the past three years. This is mainly due to the significant investments in its own search engine Bing. Despite Bing’s market share increasing, Google continues to rule the search market.