For the past few months, Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) had been shopping its interactive agency, Razorfish. Now, there is a deal: Publicis has agreed to pay roughly $530 million for the firm. The deal is part cash, part stock.Razorfish, which got its start in 1995, has grown into a dominant player in web media consulting. Yet, this is really not a core business that Microsoft is interested in (the company inherited Razorfish in its $6 billion acquisition of aQuantive several years ago). If anything, it poses conflicts with customers that want to use the company's search and marketing software offerings.




