KACHARAGADLA

Yahoo’s 20-plus year tenure as an independent company is no more, with news that it has been acquired by Verizon for $4.83 billion. Word spread over the weekend about the pending deal, but now it’s official. As part of the acquisition, Yahoo will be integrated with AOL under Marni Walden, Verizon’s EVP and president of product innovation and new businesses organization. “Just over a year ago, we acquired AOL to enhance our strategy of providing a cross-screen connection for consumers, creators and advertisers,” said Lowell McAdam, Verizon chairman and CEO, in a press release. “The acquisition of Yahoo will put Verizon in a highly competitive position as a top global mobile media company, and help accelerate our revenue stream in digital advertising.” Verizon’s victory The selection of Verizon wasn’t exactly a surprise, as it had always been thepresumptive front-runner in the bid to purchase the once-mighty search engine company. Near the beginning of the year, Yahoo ann

Yahoo Inc shelved plans to spin off its stake in Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, under pressure from activist investors worried about billions of dollars in taxes, and said instead it is looking at creating a separate company to hold the rest of its assets. The decision, following three days of board deliberations last week, is an explicit rejection of Chief Executive Marissa Mayer's plan to spin off the Alibaba stake and may cloud her focus on reviving Yahoo's core business of selling ads on its popular news and sports websites. Investors were unenthusiastic as they digested the complexity of the "reverse spin-off." "You've got a sinking ship right now," said Jeffrey Carbone, senior partner with Cornerstone Financial Partners in Cornelius, North Carolina, a former Yahoo shareholder. "Yahoo is just a company in trouble." Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer. Image: Reuters The company, overtaken by Google, Facebook and other