Yahoo board approves AOL talks

 

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By Stuart Turton

Posted on 24 Sep 2008 at 10:36

Yahoo's board has green-lighted fresh talks with Time Warner concerning the future of its AOL division, according to reports.

Quoting sources familiar with the matter The Financial Times claims that no active negotiations are currently taking place between the companies, but that Yahoo is ready to reopen talks which stalled when it signed its advertising deal with Google.

Yahoo was rumoured to have discussed a potential acquisition of AOL earlier in the year, as it looked for ways to head off Microsoft's $42 billion offer.

There was also speculation that Time Warner might consider investing in Yahoo, though MySpace was also rumoured to be an interested party.

With the dust settled on the Microsoft affair, Yahoo now looks ready to press on with the deal after Time Warner chief executive Jeff Bewkes confirmed last month that AOL would split its internet and media business.

The decision came at the first meeting of the new board, which now includes activist investor Carl Icahn and his allies, Frank Biondi and Frank Chapple, who were given seats in a bid to quell a potential shareholder revolt.