There has been a lot of buzz around the search engine world in recent months, but it’s likely that the market will get a lot more heated – and cause many to reconsider search engine optimization (SEO) strategies – if a proposed Microsoft/Yahoo deal materializes this week.

Advertising Age is reporting that a deal between Microsoft and Yahoo is imminent and is likely to be announced this week which could give serious competition to search engine giant Google.

According to the report, Yahoo may need to make a deal with Microsoft in order to remain competitive in the search world as the magazine says Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer recently told a group that the company will spend 5 percent to 10 percent of its operating income on search in the next few years.

"There is no way [Yahoo] can compete with that," Tim Cadogan, former senior vice president of global advertising for Yahoo told the magazine. "As Bing grows, the first place Bing takes share from is not Google but the other guys. So Yahoo is going to lose share unless they have something radical planned."

The news comes a week after Yahoo unveiled its new homepage which is designed to keep people on the Yahoo portal while still accessing content from other sites like Facebook and even Gmail.

Katherine Griwert is Brafton's Marketing Director. She's practiced content marketing, SEO and social marketing for over five years, and her enthusiasm for new media has even deeper roots. Katherine holds a degree in American Studies from Boston College, and her writing is featured in a number of web publications.