Yahoo has finally sold off its problem-addled internet business to buyer Verizon for $4.83 billion (£3.86bn), 16 years after Yahoo grabbed headlines during the dot-com bubble in 2000 with a market capitalisation of $125 billion.
The all-cash deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2017, and does not include Yahoo’s cash, its shares in Alibaba Group Holdings, its shares in Yahoo Japan, and Yahoo’s non-core patents (called the Excalibur portfolio).
Verizon’s purchase comes a year after it bought up AOL to boost its consumer and advertising business, and it hopes the acquisition of Yahoo’s assets will “put Verizon in a highly competitive position as a top global mobile media company”.
“Yahoo is a company that has changed the world, and will continue to do so through this combination with Verizon and AOL,” said Yahoo boss Marissa Mayer.
“Yahoo and AOL popularised the Internet, email, search and real-time media. It’s poetic to be joining forces with AOL and Verizon as we enter our next chapter focused on achieving scale on mobile. We have a terrific, loyal, experienced and quality team, and I couldn’t be prouder of our achievements to date, including building our new lines of business to $1.6 billion (£1.2bn) in GAAP revenue in 2015. I’m excited to extend our momentum through this transaction,” she added.
By the date the deal closes, Verizon will boast a significant portfolio of owned and partnered global brands. With Yahoo’s core business, the company gets hold of Yahoo’s finance, news and sports channels, along with the Yahoo email services. Other assets included in the sale are Yahoo’s Brightroll, a programmatic demand-side platform; Flurry, an independent mobile apps analytics service; and Gemini, a native and search advertising product.
Yahoo will be integrated with AOL under Marni Walden, EVP and President of the Product Innovation and New Businesses organisation at Verizon.
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