MappingTheWeb //

Will they? Won’t they?

Listening to news about a potential Yahoo-Facebook deal is like watching a ping pong game. A long game at that. Since acquisition rumours started swirling over two months ago, uncertainty still looms. Just when I think the deal is done, new reports surface that tell me otherwise. My neck is starting to get sore.

TechCrunch continues to report on the status of the deal, but progress is slow, if not stagnant. Why is this deal taking so long? My guess is that Yahoo doesn’t want to pay an inflated price for the social network, while Mark Zuckerberg doesn’t want to go out without a bang. He’s the man in charge and wants top dollar. Whether Yahoo is willing to offer that, or something comparable, is another story.

The hype and buzz around the story is essentially over. Now, people are just straight up annoyed and simply want to know whether it’s a done-deal or not. Add me to that list.

I think the deal would be a great accomplishment for Yahoo, if indeed it was to be completed at a reasonable price point. My biggest fear, however, is that Yahoo integrates the network into its current offering. This would severely affect the credibility and loyalty of the SN and hamper future growth. A Flickr-ish strategy may be a good path to follow. Stick with the old website and merely insert a small Yahoo logo strategically throughout, thus not taking away from the previous user experience. Piss people off with a new design and obligatory Yahoo log-in credentials, and don’t expect them to return.

As we continue to watch this ceremonial ritual play out, it will be interesting to see if Yahoo can seduce Facebook - or if the latter seems content playing ‘hard to get’ and demanding more from the relationship.