Yahoo and Microsoft: It’s Finally Over

After many months of speculation, Microsoft and Yahoo have ended talks of Microsoft acquiring Yahoo, according to Yahoo’s press release announced yesterday. The news exploded back earlier this year when Microsoft wanted to acquire Yahoo but Yahoo was reluctant and quite possibly kept Microsoft off from taking them over with a hostile takeover. However, more recently, Microsoft and Yahoo began communicating again about Microsoft acquiring Yahoo about a “deal more narrower in scope than a full acquisition,” according to PC Magazine.

What are the reasons the talks have finally come to an end? According to Yahoo, Microsoft was only interested in acquiring their search business and not all of the company. Yahoo’s Board of Directors commented that “such a transaction would not be consistent with the company’s view of the converging search and display marketplaces, would leave the company without an independent search business that it views as critical to its strategic future and would not be in the best interests of Yahoo stockholders.”

The implications for Yahoo ending all talks with Microsoft could continue to stress Yahoo for months to come. According to several reports, Yahoo faces the possibility of its board members being voted out in a proxy battle that has been spurred by billionaire Carl Icahn.

Microsoft recently stated yesterday that the offer to purchase Yahoo’s search business remains on the table and that they have not confirmed that the talks with Yahoo are over.