Yahoo boss attacks shareholder shuffle
You don't understand the facts
YAHOO'S chairman has decided that patronising a shareholder revolt is the best way to end it. After all, it worked really well for Marie Antoinette.
Roy Bostock has lashed out at billionaire investor Carl Icahn's attempt to replace Yahoo's directors and complete a deal with Microsoft.
He said the deal isn't good for Yahoo stockholders and showed "a significant misunderstanding of the facts".
The letter, which has been published on Siliconvalley.com claimed Icahn did not realise the diligence with which our board evaluated and responded to that proposal.
Bostock added that he didn’t believe it was in the best interests of Yahoo stockholders to allow Icahn and his cronies to take control of Yahoo for the express purpose of trying to force a sale of Yahoo to a formerly interested buyer which has publicly stated that it has moved on.
During the last 10 days, Icahn has bought 59 million shares, currently worth $1.6 billion. He said he has asked the Federal Trade Commission to clear the purchase of up to $2.5billion worth of stock. It is starting to look like "let 'em eat cake" responses are not going to work. µ
Comments
Either way you cut the cake...
... Agency Dilemma = Mismanagementwow
If Yahoo only had more debt than they were worth, then a broke would think thwice at tying to schwee-p up the peeces.Cake?
Maybe the members of the board of Yahoo! do understand...Maybe they want yahoo to stay free.
Sometimes it's not all about the money...but providing value and service.
Why Yahoo doesn't want to be bought by Microsoft
Microsoft buying Yahoo might be good for Microsoft, but it wouldn't be good for Yahoo, and I think that's why Jerry Yang was so against doing a deal, and why he held out for a valuation so much higher than the original stock price.
I mean, who really wants to be bought out by a company that:
1) Is a convicted monopolist in 5 or 6 jurisdictions
2) Has carried out a 10 year battle with the EU over whether they would obey the law
3) Has avoided obeying the law in the USA by buying of the Bush regime
4) Threatened to stop making Korean versions of Windows and Office when the Korean competition people moved against them
5) Destroyed emails deliberately rather than turning them over during discovery in the BURST case
6) Redesigned their Email Server software to make it easier to destroy emails so they cannot be turned over in discovery
7) Used dirty tricks to get ISO approval of OOXML
8) Has a reputation that is so low that the company can walk under a snake with a top hat on
In effect what Jerry Yang was saying was that he didn't want his company bought by the Tony Soprano of the tech industry, and I can't blame him one little bit. Some business people do retain shreds of honor, though the general public probably wouldn't believe this.
And of course a final reason - who would want to work for a Vole?