Microsoft and Yahoo! Form Alliance for Search, Ads

Microhoo or Yabing?

Yahoo! and Microsoft have announced that the two have finalized an advertising and search deal that will have Bing power Yahoo's search results and Yahoo! provide search-advertising services for both companies.

Microsoft and Yahoo! first announced the 10-year-long deal in July of this year. Scheduled for completion in late October, the two competing companies then said they needed more time to nail down the details. On Friday the two announced that the deal had been "finalized and executed."

The deal should help both companies compete more aggressively with Google. The two released the following statement late on Friday:

“Microsoft and Yahoo! believe that this deal will create a sustainable and more compelling alternative in search that can provide consumers, advertisers and publishers real choice, better value, and more innovation.

“Yahoo! and Microsoft welcome the broad support the deal has received from key players in the advertising industry and remain hopeful that the closing of the transaction can occur in early 2010.”

Read the full press release here.