If you thought things weren’t going that great for Yahoo, well, you were right. Rumors last week said that the huge internet company was in negotiations with Verizon, which was interested in purchasing Yahoo for nearly $5 billion. Both companies confirmed the deal on Monday, with Verizon paying $4.83 billion for Yahoo’s core business and some real estate, which is almost $500 million more than it paid for AOL last year.
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Under the deal, Verizon gets almost everything from Yahoo, including its well-known email service, the Brightroll ad service, and other services belonging to Yahoo. The most valuable commodity for Yahoo is its user base, which Verizon is likely most interested in. Yahoo reaches a global audience of more than 1 billion monthly users, including 600 million active mobile users according to the press releases covering the deal.
What Verzion isn’t buying are Yahoo’s cash or its stakes in Yahoo Japan and Alibaba. Yahoo will retain these assets and its cash, and the company will change its name after the purchase is completed, as it transitions into a publicly traded investment company.
The deal should be completed by the first quarter of 2017, assuming it passes regulatory scrutiny. Until then, the company will continue to operate independently, as it does today.
Verizon’s full press release confirming the purchase is available at this link. Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer also announced the deal in a post on Tumblr, available here. Interestingly, Mayer will continue to stay on with Yahoo after the acquisition is complete.
