Board Meeting Kickstarts Yahoo-AOL Rumors

Microhoo negotiations have come and gone.  We’re midway through a tussle over the potential Yahoogle search ad deal.  And now, as a report indicates that the Yahoo board has authorized talks, the latest odd name attached to a possible combination of Internet companies looks to be Yahaol.

An AOL acquisition has been the subject of rumors for some time, of course, but the report escalates things to a more concrete level.  So on to the news.  Richard Waters writes, "Yahoo’s new board on Tuesday cleared the way for a fresh round of discussions with Time Warner over the future of its AOL unit . . ."

 

He cites a "person familiar with the company’s thinking," which, coming from the Financial Times, is less shaky than it sounds.

The idea of Yahoo buying AOL makes some sense, taken in combination with recent comments from Jeff Bewkes and Carl Icahn’s fresh presence on Yahoo’s board.  AOL’s Platform-A appears to be gussying itself up for something big, as well.

A look to the Nasdaq shows that Yahoo’s investors don’t seem to hate the concept, sending the company’s stock up in early trading.  We’ll keep an eye open for potential prices and timeframes.