The HN title has gone through quite a few iterations by now.

- Microsoft beat Apple to buy PowerPoint for $14M

- How Microsoft beat Apple to buy PowerPoint for $14M

- Microsoft beat Apple to buy PowerPoint for $14M (1987)

- Microsoft beat Apple to buy PowerPoint for $14M (2016)

I would prefer "How Microsoft beat Apple to buy PowerPoint for $14M (2016)" to make it clear that this is both a story about a past event, and this story was told some years ago.