Ask.com’s Latest Query: Wanna Buy a Search Engine?

Well, there it is. Barry Diller would rather sell off IAC’s Ask.com search engine than brave a fiercely competitive market with a property whose future he describes as “speculative.”

Asked during an earnings call Tuesday if IAC (IACI) would consider selling the search engine, Diller said it most certainly would. “We’ve been asked a lot whether we’re open to consolidating transactions in the area of search. The answer is yes,” he said. “And, it is unlikely that we would be the consolidator.”

Obviously.

So Ask is for sale. The question now is who wants it?