Search Share @ 30%, Is Microsoft Halucinating?

More evidence was revealed today that Microsoft has grand aspirations for its search and media business. Microsoft’s Division President Kevin Johnson revealed at the UBC conference that within 3-5 years Microsoft will become the #2 player in search with a multi tiered strategy:

• Grow share of online page views from 6% now to 10%.
• Boost share of minutes spent from 17% to 20%.
• Grow share of search from 10% to 30%
• Grow share of advertising dollars from 6% to 40%

Some suggest Microsoft is hallucinating to expect such dramatic improvements, however it has demonstrated some seriousness through the recent $6 billion acquisition of aQuantive in August paying a 85% premium above current value. Rumors continue to circulate that an acquisition of Yahoo is in the works and this could be the grand strategy. ”If you look at the landscape of other competitors or other companies in this area, not only do we have the technology, research and development capability to deploy, but willingness to invest for the long term,” said Johnson during interviews at the UBS conference.Microsoft has made a history of coming from behind and being second or third to market. It appears in this latest report Mr. Johnson is laying the ground work for a dramatic encore.