Microsoft bought enterprise social-networking vendor Yammer for $1.2 billion in 2012, and since then has ended up cribbing a number of Yammer technologies in its own Office 365 service. After all, this isn't Microsoft's first purchase in the social media space. I think it's a wonderful move, and something that's bound to make my life and your life so much cooler in the years to come.

While many may think that this was something expected, others may laugh at this move because Microsoft had an opportunity to buy LinkedIn for way cheaper in the past (Ouch!), a few others may try to convince themselves that this is the beginning of the end for two major brands that may be in the last decades of their lives.

The company said it would finalize the deal any time soon.(L-R) LinkedIn CEO Jeff Weiner, Mirosoft CEO Satya Nadella & LinkedIn Co-Founder Reid Hoffman. Microsoft's $26-billion (24.5-billion-euro) takeover of LinkedIn was announced in June, the biggest ever deal for a social media company.įollowing approval from Brussels, Microsoft has now cleared all regulatory hurdles in all world regions. 'Today's decision ensures that Europeans will continue to enjoy a freedom of choice between professional social networks,' EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said in a statement. LinkedIn as a compulsory component could have come at the disadvantage of rival sites particularly in Austria, Germany and Poland, the European Commission argued. The EU executive announced Tuesday it had approved Microsoft's mega buyout of professional networking site LinkedIn.īut the European Commission said it only gave the green light to the deal after the US software giant promised to meet commitments to allow fair competition.Īmong other things, Microsoft pledged to leave personal computer manufacturers and distributors a choice as to whether to install LinkedIn on Windows operating systems or not.

Microsoft and linkedin