Software giant Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) has sold off their shares in Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA) according to a document that was filed with the SEC. The document was filed last week. Microsoft divested the remaining stake it had in the Internet service provider company. The number of shares that Microsoft owned in Comcast amounted to 150 million overall.
The total investment Microsoft made in Comcast was $1 billion in 1997. Microsoft saw this as a way to help the company build high-speed Internet connections.
“Our vision for connecting the world of PCs and TVs has long included advanced broadband capabilities to deliver video, data, and interactivity to the home,” stated Bill Gates, Microsoft chairman and co-founder, regarding the transaction. “Comcast’s integrated approach to cable distribution, programming, and telecommunications complements that vision of linking PCs and TVs.”
It is unclear why Microsoft has decided to pull on their investment. InformationWeek speculates that it may be regarding the controversy around capping download speeds for P2P services or that Microsoft needs to raise cash for an impending acquisition.
Supposedly Jeff Bewkes (CEO/Chairman of Time Warner), Roy Bostock (Chairman of Yahoo!), and Steve Ballmer (CEO of Microsoft) met at some point last week.
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