Icahn gets on board at Yahoo! - so what's next?

Stephen Withers
Tuesday, 22 July 2008 04:54

IT Industry - Strategy

And Icahn seems to have changed his tune with a statement that suggests he is not so keen to press forward with a full or partial sale of Yahoo! as he previously seemed.

"I am very pleased that this settlement will allow me to work in partnership with Yahoo!'s Board and management team to help the Company achieve its full potential," said Icahn.

"While I continue to believe that the sale of the whole Company or the sale of its Search business in the right transaction must be given full consideration, I share the view that Yahoo!'s valuable collection of assets positions it well to continue expanding its online leadership and enhancing returns to stockholders."

But the statement did show a little needle, with Icahn indicating that he is not prepared to be sidelined by the current directors: "I am happy that the board has agreed in the settlement agreement that any meaningful transaction, including the strategy in dealing with that transaction, will be fully discussed with the entire board before any final decision is made."

So where does that leave Yahoo!?

The board has been prepared to support the company's acquisition at the right price ($US33 per share) but would only back the divestiture of just the search business if the deal attracted a sufficiently high premium (just how big has not been publicly revealed) to compensate for the risk involved in splitting the business.

Find out on page 4 whether the news helped or hindered Yahoo!'s share price.