Icahn Ready to Dump Yahoo Board
Icahn Ready to Dump Yahoo Board
by , 11:25 AM EDT, May 15th, 2008
Carl Icahn, well known billionaire and investor, thinks Yahoo "completely botched" Microsoft's buyout offer and is now presenting his own pro-Microsoft proxy board in an effort to oust the Internet search and advertising company's current board. Mr. Icahn is hoping that if his board nominations are accepted, Microsoft will return to the negotiation table and close a deal with Yahoo, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Mr. Icahn commented "It is quite obvious that Microsoft's bid of $33 per share is a superior alternative to Yahoo's prospects on a standalone basis."
Mr. Icahn's board nominations include himself; lieutenant Keith Meister; Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban; former Viacom Inc. Chief Executive Frank J. Biondi Jr.; venture capitalist and brother of Dell CEO Michael Dell, Adam Dell; Harvard professor Lucian Bebcuk; former Nextel Partners CEO John Chapple; former CEO of the ad agency Gray Global, Edward Meyer; money manager Brian Posner; and the founder and co-CEO of New Line Cinema, Robert Shaye.
He added in a letter to Yahoo Chairman Roy Bostock "the board of directors of Yahoo has acted irrationally and lost the faith of shareholders."
Microsoft presented Yahoo with an unsolicited buyout offer in February for US$44.6 billion. The was offer undervalued, according to Yahoo, and was rejected.
Microsoft eventually pressured Yahoo to the negotiating table with an ultimatum and the threat of a hostile takeover attempt. The Redmond-based company ultimately walked away from its offer claiming the buyout no longer made fiscal sense.
Mr. Icahn, however, disagrees and is pushing to get the two companies to strike a deal if his board nominees are elected.
Microsoft has not expressed interest in restarting talks with Yahoo.
Observer Comments
Thu May 15, 2008 12:37 pm Subject: Mark Cuban posted his business plan
Cuban's business plan was posted yesterday. How interesting! It's funny that the reaction from everyone everywhere yesterday was that Carl Icahn didn't care about employees, customers, or anything that didn't result in dead puppies. Now he's got some really bright people on board (and almost on the board) who can make sure Yahoo! returns its investors' investment.
Thu May 15, 2008 1:11 pm Subject: What he doesn't get...
They should have accepted Microsoft's offer when it represented a 62% premium to the share price. MSFT will not be returning to bail Yahoo ( or Carl Icahn ) out.
But, if they want to sell at close to the $19 a share price, then maybe... As long a Jerry Yang is fired, & there is no poisoned pills.
Tigger, regarding your comment "not everybody wants to be associated with Microsoft and that the board felt it was a really bad idea to go ahead with the buyout.
'Cause when you lay down with dogs, you're gonna get fleas."
HOW'S THAT ACTIVE SYNC LICENSE APPLE JUST BOUGHT FROM MSFT WORKIN'?
OR, THE MICROSOFT EXCHANGE LICENSE?
OR, MS-OFFICE for Mac?
You might want to consider that without Microsoft, Apple would've died off a long time ago.
ITCH MUCH?
Thu May 15, 2008 3:40 pm Subject: Re: Tiger, Scratch much?
QuoteAnonymous wrote:
Tigger, regarding your comment "not everybody wants to be associated with Microsoft and that the board felt it was a really bad idea to go ahead with the buyout.
'Cause when you lay down with dogs, you're gonna get fleas."
HOW'S THAT ACTIVE SYNC LICENSE APPLE JUST BOUGHT FROM MSFT WORKIN'?
OR, THE MICROSOFT EXCHANGE LICENSE?
OR, MS-OFFICE for Mac?
You might want to consider that without Microsoft, Apple would've died off a long time ago.
ITCH MUCH?
There is a huge difference between licensing technology and being bought out.
And stating that "without Microsoft, Apple would've died off a long time ago." is bogus. MS products for the Mac (and there are very few) makes Apple a little more palatable in the business world, but doesn't have near the same effect in the consumer space. And if you are saying that MS bailed Apple out with their $150M in 1997 and that "saved" Apple, you 'd be wrong there too.
What saved Apple from dying off was the return of Steve Jobs and the resultant focus.
Maybe Mr. Yang thinks the answer is in China? I don't want to clutter this forum so you can my analysis here http://www.poandpo.com/business-as-usual/can-jerry-yang-find-help-in-china
Do you think there's something to it, or I'm talking about conspiracy theory?
All you back biters need to realize that none of these people care one whit about anything you posted. It's all about business and what the stock price is. These people do not think about how evil MS is or how Apple is that other less popular brand. It's all about the dollars and you are all deluding yourselves if your think your petty "you suck... no, you suck" fights about vapor mean anything to anyone, anywhere.
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