Should Apple Just Buy Yahoo!?

Apple and Yahoo! are reportedly discussing expanding their relationship.

Wouldn't it be wild if Apple's next move was to put a ring on it?

Let's be frank. The chances of Apple and Yahoo! hooking up are slim. Yahoo! turned down Microsoft at a much higher price point several years ago, and the stock's been a market darling since Google executive Marissa Mayer took the helm after a long line of unsuccessful CEOs.

However, each company would have plenty to gain by warming up to the other.

Folks "briefed on the matter" are telling The Wall Street Journal that the two companies are discussing ways to prominently integrate more of Yahoo!'s services on Apple's iPhone and iPad devices.

That's a no-brainer. Yahoo! already provides some of the default iOS apps for stock quotes and weather. Perhaps more importantly, Yahoo! isn't Microsoft or Google.

Mr. Softy and Big G are Apple's two biggest rivals, though these days Google has become the bigger enemy as Android conquers the smartphone and now tablet markets. Apple tried to distance itself from Google last year, going with a homegrown default solution to Apple Maps.

Right. We know how badly that played out for Apple. Any bone that Apple could throw Yahoo! is one less bone that it would either throw out to Google or possibly mess up on its own.

Yahoo! could also use Apple. Forget Yahoo!'s recent buoyant stock price. Ever since Yahoo! struck a deal to outsource its flagship search business to Microsoft Bing, revenue growth has been stagnant and Yahoo!'s been shedding market share. There isn't a lot that Yahoo! can do to change that. It struck a deal for its search portal to be Bing's trophy wife for the next 10 years, and folks will naturally wean themselves off of Yahoo! to get their results directly from the source. Yahoo! knows this. It lived through it when Google powered its queries.

Let's cut to the chase: Apple may find itself offering a search product to remain competitive with Google without assisting the enemy. Why not dust off Yahoo!'s cobwebbed yet once-effective search technology? This would likely violate the terms of Yahoo!'s deal with Bing, but obviously there has to be a way out -- and a shotgun wedding with Apple may do exactly that.

Apple would benefit from nearly every aspect of Yahoo!'s wide array of online properties and Asian investments. Yahoo! would benefit from being a part of the world's most popular mobile operating system outside of Android.

Don't run off to check the bridal registry. A deal isn't really likely to happen. However, under different circumstances, Apple and Yahoo! would've looked so good walking down the aisle at a point when Apple investors need a spark and Yahoo! investors need growth.

It's a battle for the crown
It's incredible to think just how much of our digital and technological lives are almost entirely shaped and molded by just a handful of companies. Find out "Who Will Win the War Between the 5 Biggest Tech Stocks?" in The Motley Fool's latest free report, which details the knock-down, drag-out battle being waged by the five kings of tech. Click here to keep reading.

The article Should Apple Just Buy Yahoo!? originally appeared on Fool.com.

Longtime Fool contributor Rick Munarriz has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Apple and Google. The Motley Fool owns shares of Apple, Google, and Microsoft. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Copyright © 1995 - 2013 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.