Microsoft to Buy Out Blackberry?

Now this is very interesting news IF it actually happens:

Research in Motion (nasdaq: RIMM - news - people ) also had a good day. Shares of the BlackBerry maker rose .9%, amid chatter that software giant Microsoft (nasdaq: MSFT - news - people ) wanted to buy the company. Microsoft may be angling to muscle rival Google (nasdaq: GOOG - news - people ) out of the mobile phone software market.

There has been talk of Google possibly getting into the mobile phone business with a Google branded phone. Maybe MSFT is going to try to head them off at the pass and really shake some things up. I think this would be a very canny move by MSFT to get away from the desktop/laptop field and become the king of mobile computing.

Also it would be nice to concentrate the Blackberry and Windows Server 2003 all into one easier to handle source. Also MSFT would get the patents to push e-mailing so they can do all sorts of crazy stuff with newer versions of Exchange Server going forward.

This would also get MSFT into the handset business so they would be able to compete head to head with Nokia, Motorola, Samsung etc. If they tried to compete from scratch they would probably fall on their head. Instead they would be buying millions of users who are already using the Blackberry service who would be unlikely to switch to Palm or the Motorola Q. They will by buying a leader in the field and not some also-ran like Palm.

I think if they complete the deal (it would cost like $46 billion and MSFT has $12 billion in cash) it will really make MSFTs stock hum since they will be buying a true growth business. It is the kind of deal that would reshape their company. It would be a little like how Apple went from Mac to IPod to IPhone in the consumer realm. Instead MSFT will be doing from Windows XP, to Windows Mobile, to Microsoft Blackberry in the corporate realm. It would suck to get a virus on your Blackberry though.