Google and Yahoo rivalry spills into real world |
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Tue, 23 Aug 2005 06:05
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LONDON - Internet powerhouses Google Inc and Yahoo Inc are reportedly in the race to acquire Amsterdam-based Trader Classified Media, according to The Sunday Times. The report also said that online auction colossus eBay was also interested in the deal.
Trader Classified Media owns around 575 print titles that include lucrative ones like Canada's Auto Trader magazine as well as Buy & Sell Chinese in the US. It also operates 56 Web sites with classified ads across 20 countries. No wonder the net's ad-hungry giants are interested! If the report does turn out to have any substance, then this is probably the beginning of another turf war between the two Internet rivals. They are already at loggerheads in the virtual world; this race for a corporate tie-up with Trader could see them battle it out in the real world as well.
This news comes in the aftermath of the very public row between Yahoo and Google last week over which group had greater search capability. The spark that set it off was the occasion of Google's first anniversary as a public company. When contacted, a spokeswoman for Google only said, "Google is always on the lookout for interesting opportunities that complement our business and mission." There was no reference at all to Trader. Yahoo meanwhile has declined to comment on these speculations.
John MacBain who continues to be the main man in the business founded trader Classified Media in 1987. As of Friday, the company was valued at €1.3 billion. The company has also made big strides in the booming Chinese market, "In March 2005, the Company exercised its option to acquire a controlling stake in Shou di Shou, a leading classified business based in Beijing and Harbin, China," said Didier Breton, Chief Operating Officer in a statement on the group's website.
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