Henry Blodget’s article yesterday raises some pretty interesting points about Facebook’s current financial state when coupled with the effectiveness of Facebook’s advertising model.

Considering that two hedge funds felt that backing Facebook at the $15 billion valuation was a prudent investment, one can only assume that there must be some validation for this figure. I’m aware that the results and ROI have been less than impressive. However, is advertising where the true value for brands lies? Perhaps there’s a greater brand connection being made through Facebook then simply ads. We haven’t even begun to see the value of Pages yet. Additionally, is three weeks a long enough opportunity for Social Ads to prove itself?

As far as the financial implications go, I have to disagree with those who feel sorry for “desperate” Microsoft. First and foremost, Microsoft has the money to burn. Don’t forget, this is a $240 million dollar expenditure to a company bringing in $50 billion in annual revenue. Additionally, Steve Ballmer has been very vocal in expressing Microsoft’s intent to acquire 100 companies over the next 5 years, and what better way to kick off acquisition season than by having the coolest kid in school on your team?

As much as I personally believe that Microsoft has a lot of catching up to do, by flexing their financial muscle and keeping Facebook away from Google, I’m convinced that they’re doing the best they can to try and close the ever-growing gap between Google and everyone else competing in the space.