Reuters confirmed that Yahoo investors have approached Microsoft for a possible buyout deal.
Yahoo Inc. officially launched an auction process last month and made itself available for a possible buyout. When the speculations began about the possible sale options, there were many buyers outlined by the analysts that could move forward with an official bid. One of the top names was of Verizon Communications that already own a similar business i.e. AOL Inc. Even, the company began to approach its bidders for a possible buyout as soon as possible.
Irrespective of the situation within the company, Yahoo itself is not sure about its future. It is also in middle to avoid a possible proxy war that its activist investor, Starboard Value LP, might launch if the firm fails to meet all of its demands. Starboard Value wants the board of directors to finalize the sale of Yahoo core internet and advertising business in the coming times but the board is looking for strategic alternatives, which CEO Marissa Mayer insisted to do so.
Several names came in front that wanted to buy Yahoo’s dying business but one prominent name was Microsoft Corporation. According to Reuters, the executives of the US software firm have entered talks with the investors of Yahoo about their plan to contribution that will finance the purchase of the search engine giant. A person familiar to the matter stated that the investors seem interested in this option.
The person confirmed that at this point, the talks between both parties are preliminary and the software giant seeks to preserve the relationship between Microsoft and Yahoo. This is not the first time both companies are planning to join hands. Yahoo and Microsoft have a longstanding search and advertising agreements prior to this.
Reuters confirmed that the private equity firms and several investors of Yahoo approached the software giant for a possible deal. Microsoft has declined to comment on this matter.
The search engine giant is currently looking to auction its core internet and advertising business including search, mail, and news sites. The pioneer internet company was once the powerhouse of the tech industry but failed to keep up with the fast moving industry which resulted in major downfall. Yahoo could not only keep up pace but failed to compete against its rising rival Google which touched new heights with the new technology. It was struggling to be on par in terms of online advertisers with Google and Facebook.
The Verizon Communications CFO, Fran Shammo, said that his firm would go forward with a move only if it is a good enough deal. Reuters say that Starboard Value has moved on Thursday to forcibly remove the entire board panel along with Marissa Mayer and her management team. The team has struggled to turn around the fate for almost four years now.
Microsoft previously approached Yahoo with a business deal almost a decade ago and the CEO of that time Steve Ballmer failed to buyout the internet company for $45 billion.
No comments:
Post a Comment