A month and half after its big deal, Microsoft executive Bruce Jaffe told the audience for his keynote at a conference in Seattle yesterday that, yes, Microsoft "paid a premium" with its $240 million Facebook investment, setting the social network's valuation at a "rich" $15 billion. Does Microsoft already have buyer's remorse?

Jaffe wouldn't go that far. At least not in public. "We feel good about it," he said, pointing out that Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing seconded Facebook's $15 billion just last week.

And it's true that after watching potential Facebook advertisers like Coca-Cola and Overstock turn from eager to hesitant, you might expect Microsoft might regret its heavy investment. But with Zuck's apology on the record, numbers which show most real users never caught wind of the scandal, and Facebook's continuing growth since the Beacon launch, there really isn't much reason for Redmond to worry about Zuck. Beyond his interest in farm animals, that is.

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