Search Biz: DoubleClick To See Layoffs? Walmart Drops The “Google PC,” & More

Today in Search Biz: Those Linux-based "Google PCs" didn’t sell like hotcakes, says Walmart. Yahoo gets a small paid search distribution deal with LiveDeal. The fight for IAC continues, DoubleClick may see layoffs after Google takes over, and Yahoo’s old CEO might be partnering with a Steven Spielberg-backed network for those who have had paranormal or extraterrestrial experiences. TheTruthIsOutThereBook, anyone?

Remember the excitement about those Linux PCs that Walmart was selling, with direct connections to Google services that made some people call them a Google PC? Aside from some guy at Google named Matt buying one, no one else did.

Heh — OK, Matt Cutts wasn’t the only one, but apparently they weren’t flying off the shelves. Google Focused Linux PC’s Fail At Wal-Mart from TechCrunch has more. You can still get them from Walmart — from its online store only. Just don’t try to do it now — the page where it is listed still says "Not Sold Online".

Little boost for old Yahoo – LiveDeal signs long-term deal with Yahoo from BusinessWeek covers how the small classifieds and yellow pages site has partnered to carry Yahoo’s ads.

That battle for control over IAC? A couple of articles with yesterday’s testimony from the New York Times and Fortune. It’s all so complicated that it makes my head hurt. Liberty Media’s John Malone doesn’t like the IAC business spin-off plan, but does Malone actually have the right to vote shares that his company owns in IAC? That’s what the trial is about, and the first day of testimony certainly doesn’t answer the question.

With the EU’s blessing, Google has finally acquired DoubleClick after a year-long attempt to obtain it. Google blogs the official good news along with the bad for DoubleClick employees:

As with most mergers, there may be reductions in headcount. We expect these to take place in the U.S. and possibly in other regions as well. We know that DoubleClick is built on the strength of its people. For this reason we’ll strive to minimize the impact of this process on all of our clients and employees.

Finally, Spielberg’s Ghost Venture Backed By Terry Semel from TechCrunch gets us back to Yahoo — or former Yahoo CEO Terry Semel. His investment firm might be partnering with Steven Spielberg on a new social network for those who have had paranormal or extraterrestrial experiences. You know, just like I said in the lead of this story.