said by Tuulilapsi :

Gator? I sincerely hope this is not true. Not only is it an incredibly bad marketing move, it would also appear to be pointless.

said by dave :

If Microsoft wanted to be heroes, they could use some of their cash reserves to buy up some adware companies, acquire sole rights to the particular technology used, and then ... do nothing with it. Kill it.

Microsoft Said to Be in Talks to Buy Adware Developer

Microsoft has been in talks to buy a private Silicon Valley company, a move that underscores just how eager Microsoft is to catch up with Google.

This year, according to the person briefed on the talks, Claria approached Microsoft about using one of Claria's new services, called BehaviorLink. The service would track the surfing patterns of the 40 million people who have Claria software installed on their PC's, but would use that information to buy ads directly from publishers. Publishers would be paid for showing the ads; Claria would be paid by marketers who want to reach consumers; and users would see fewer pop-ups.

Mr. Ballmer, according to the person briefed on the talks, had been pushing Yusuf Mehdi, the senior vice president in charge of MSN and Microsoft's search business, to be more aggressive in closing the gap with Google, including making acquisitions. And Mr. Ballmer, this person said, gave approval to begin negotiations with Claria two weeks ago.

Analysts said Microsoft would probably be most interested in the long-term potential of Claria's personalization software rather than its pop-up ads. Responding to customer complaints, Microsoft stopped selling pop-up ads on its MSN Web sites in May 2003.

said by antiserious :

Claria, based in Redwood City, Calif., is moving beyond pop-ups to personalized services, like delivering local weather information and distributing software that lets Web publishers offer personalized pages.

Software tailored to individual preferences and browsing habits opens the door to personalized advertising.

said by B :

So if the REAL intent were "purchase Spyware in order to destroy it" then why wouldn't they come out and say so?

said by B :

That would be lovely, of course, hpguru , but think about it. If that were MS's intention, WHY would they have to hide it in any way?

said by hpguru :

I don't think there is anything odd or underhanded about companies declining to discuss acquisitions which may still be in negotiations. Why do you?

said by B :

That's completely unfair to me, a straw man pulled out of the ether, and counterintuitive to boot.

said by hpguru :

I wouldn't be so quick to bash Microsoft over this.

said by mers2 :

I'll be waiting to see what Microsoft does should the sale go through.

said by redxii :

Using the data would be just as unethical to me.
--
God put me on this Earth to accomplish a certain number of things. Right now, I am so far behind I will never die.

said by SnowyOne :

One thing is for sure if it's true that Microsoft is in discussion with Claria/Gator re a buyout.
Wether the sale materializes or not, Microsoft is going to know more about the inner workings of Spyware, Claria/Gator in particular. Microsoft will be holding the winning hand if a sale comes down to the 11th hour. On the other hand, any non-disclosure agreements signed by Microsoft for the purpose of negotiations could neuter Microsoft's Anti Spyware app as far as Claria/Gator goes.