Microsoft Discloses $6.2 Billion Write-Down

After the market close on Monday, Microsoft MSFT said that it would be recording a $6.2 billion goodwill write-down, primarily as a result of its acquisition of aQuantive Inc. in 2007. The tech giant paid $6.3 billion for the online advertising firm, in an effort to help it broker online ads on partner websites, according to The Wall Street Journal. "While the aQuantive acquisition continues to provide tools for Microsoft's online advertising efforts, the acquisition did not accelerate growth to the degree anticipated, contributing to the write down," the company said. The write-down comes as Microsoft is seeing an improvement in its online services division, but the company said that its expectations for future growth and profits are lower than they had previously estimated. Microsoft shares were trading down 0.36% to $30.45 in Monday's after hours session in the wake of the news.