BBC

The deadline which Microsoft gave Yahoo to respond to its $44.6bn (£22.4bn) takeover offer has expired, paving the way for a hostile takeover battle.

Microsoft gave its rival until Sunday to accept its bid, something which Yahoo has showed no sign of doing after dismissing the offer as inadequate.

Experts believe Microsoft will now seek to gain ground by trying to get supportive voices onto Yahoo's board.

On Thursday, Microsoft reported an 11% fall in quarterly profits.

'Battle against time'

Microsoft can either now withdraw its offer or go directly to Yahoo's shareholders, which is seen as the most likely outcome.

Microsoft has urged Yahoo to accept a deal rather than embark on what could turn out to be a prolonged and bitter bid battle.

'With respect to Yahoo we have been clear [that] speed is of the essence,' Microsoft chief finance officer Chris Liddell said on Thursday.

Analysts have mixed feelings about the impact a tie-up with Yahoo might have.

Andy Miedler, an analyst with Edward Jones, said that while the Microsoft Yahoo deal made strategic sense, from a financial perspective, 'we're cautious'.

'We already think they're paying a high price,' he said.

Although Microsoft's profits fell 11% to $4.39bn (£2.22bn) in the three months to 31 March from $4.93bn a year earlier, the results were in line with expectations.

Microsoft's online services saw a 40% rise in sales to $843m in the quarter, but its online sales still fall far behind Google.

Buying Yahoo would give Microsoft a big boost in its battle with market leader Google for pre-eminence on the online search market.