Microsoft to Provide and Sell Ads on Facebook, the Web Site - New York Times

Another facet of Google/Microsoft competition... 

Microsoft was one of the competitors for the deal with MySpace, which earlier this month registered its 100 millionth user, compared with Facebook’s 9 million registered users. “It’s basically a consolation prize,’’ Phil Leigh, president of Inside Digital Media, a market research firm specializing in digital media, said of the deal. “But Facebook is also a legitimate test bed, a place where Microsoft can test new technology in a commercial context,’’ he said.

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Mr. Berkowitz [Steve Berkowitz, senior vice president of the online services group for Microsoft] said the deal was “not comparable to the MySpace deal because we focused on the right economics for both parties.’’

Source: Microsoft to Provide and Sell Ads on Facebook, the Web Site - New York Times