Following on its $6 billion purchase of online advertising firm aQuantive Inc., Microsoft Corp. this week did a different kind of deal: It bought a chunk of land in its home city of Redmond, Wash., from Nintendo of America Inc. According to The Seattle Times, Microsoft has a powerful appetite for real estate in Redmond these days, yet its long-term plans for this particular property remain unclear. The company may provide office space for about 2,000 people, or it could be part of its $1.3 billion campus expansion. Neither company would disclose the price paid for the land, but it was a good piece of business for Nintendo. The property was assessed at more than $26.5 million, The Seattle Times reported. Nintendo bought the land in 1987 for $601,277. —Cheryl Meyer

See May 18 story from TheDeal.com
See July 4 story from The Seattle Times