AOL Hires Financial Adviser in Midst of Yahoo Acquisition Rumors
Seems like its not just another rumor about AOl acquiring Yahoo, it might just happen. AOL has hired financial advisers to suggest possible strategies to deal with the company’s current financial crisis. Among other options a buyout of Yahoo is the main choice. Rumors of a possible acquisition surfaced as, AOL is trying it’s level best to reincarnate as an all new and successful company.
It is aiming to be a media and content company rather than an internet provider company. Till now it seems like a haywire shopping spree with acquisitions of TechCrunch (Technology blog) , Thing Labs (App Developers) and 5 min (Online Video Network). Though earnings have hampered in the recent quarter but AOL considers it as a strategic investment. In an attempt to acquire a new image the company even redesigned the website home page.
In this situation, acquisition of Yahoo would act as a catalyst to AOL’s transformation. Rumors have it that the collaboration might turn out to be anything from an online services partnership to an acquisition or even nothing. Yahoo having said “No” to Microsoft two years ago in their attempt to acquire the company, are pretty much unpredictable in the situation. It must not be forgotten that financial advisers are weighing out several other options as well as mentioned by Reuters, as follows:
These options include merging Yahoo’s and AOL’s online businesses and spinning off Yahoo’s Asian assets to give shareholders back some capital, the paper reported. Another idea would have private equity buy a stake in the combined operations and give a dividend to Yahoo shareholders, the paper said. AOL is also looking at alternatives other than a deal with Yahoo, the paper reported on its website. Last month, a source told Reuters that several private equity firms had approached Internet and media companies including News Corp and AOL to gauge their interest in buying out Yahoo. A potential deal would be contingent on Yahoo selling its prized Asian assets, including a 40 percent stake in China’s Alibaba Group and 34.5 percent of Yahoo Japan, the source told Reuters at the time.
AOL are trying very hard to break new ground and turn around the now struggling but once very successful company. But the main question is whether the AOL team is triumphant in this attempt or not? A previous post here on Silicon ANGLE discusses AOL’s new strategy and it’s success.
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