Yahoo! faces proxy fight

28th April 2008

Yahoo! could be facing a proxy fight after letting Microsoft's takeover deadline pass quietly this weekend.

Three weeks ago, the software giant's chief executive, Steve Ballmer, told Yahoo! it must accept Microsoft's 31 cents-per-share offer by 07:00 on Sunday April 27th.

However, this date passed without comment from either side this weekend, leaving Yahoo facing a potential hostile takeover.

The search pioneer - founded by Jerry Yang and David Filo in 1994 - last week posted first quarter income of £271.5 million, triple that of the first quarter.

However, Microsoft's chief financial officer Chris Liddell last week confirmed the company's position.

"With respect to Yahoo we have been clear: speed is of the essence," he said.

Yahoo! has sought alternatives to a takeover by Microsoft, holding talks with MySpace over a potential deal with the News Corporation-owned social networking site, as well as looking with Time Warner at a potential alliance with AOL.