Now that the Microsoft – Yahoo deal (or no deal) is history, there are no other major deals to be expected from Microsoft in the near future, Chairman Bill Gates said during a press conference in Tokyo on Wednesday. The company is currently pursuing its own independent path, Gates said, the Associated Press reported.

“Now at this point Microsoft is focused on its independent strategy,” Gates said, reinforcing the idea Steve Ballmer has in mind. However, going solo for now doesn’t exclude other partnerships, Microsoft’s Chairman also told reporters, but without giving any names (Facebook could be the next step, as the Wall Street Journal suggested).

"Well, the key decisions on that will be made by Microsoft CEO Steven Ballmer, who took a look at Yahoo and decided that on our own he likes the stuff that we're doing," Gates said according to the AP.

Microsoft has plans of its own for the future, and three months of failed negotiations won’t alter them. “We will make the advances that give people a great choice,” Gates said, showing once more (if necessary) that the Google fight is not over, and they will continue to pursue it.

Despite raising their offer to $33 per share, Microsoft’s bid proved to be insufficient, as Yahoo demanded $4 per share above its latest offer, which would have added $5 billion more to the deal. So the deal was no-deal at the end of the week.

For the future, Microsoft might turn to collaborations with other large Internet companies, such as Time Warner's AOL and News Corp.'s MySpace but also promising startups such as Facebook and LinkedIn.

Microsoft has one clear mission now: to prove that, Yahoo or no Yahoo, it is perfectly capable of challenging Google on its own (the endless negotiations got everyone wondering how desperate Microsoft really is to close the deal).

The way things look right now, it seems that going solo is the best strategy, as both Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer pointed out over the past few days.