US telecommunications company Verizon is the leading contender to acquire internet company Yahoo’s online business following the closure of the first round of bidding, according to multiple reports.
The Bloomberg news agency said Verizon will face main competition from at least one other company and a private equity firm in the bidding for Yahoo, with the first round having closed on Monday.
Yahoo is said to have received offers from interested parties including Verizon, private equity firm TPG and YP Holdings LLC, the digital-advertising business of what was formerly called Yellowpages.com.
Reuters added that no two offers submitted were identical, and Yahoo is now deciding which proposed structures and assets to be divested offer the best potential value. The news agency added that Yahoo hopes the auction can conclude by June, but this target could yet slip.
Yahoo staged its first-quarter earnings call yesterday (Tuesday), with chief executive Marissa Mayer stating the company’s management had been “running a quality process designed to keep interested parties engaged.”
“Over the past two months, (chief financial officer Ken Goldman) and I and the rest of the management team have spent time in person and on the phone with interested participants, including some of the most well-known, respected names in the industry,” Mayer added.
Yahoo has increased its activity in sports activities considerably since the turn of the year, striking partnerships with North America’s Major League Baseball and NHL ice hockey leagues, as well as golf’s PGA Tour. Yahoo last month also launched a new service dedicated to coverage of major esports events around the world.