Yahoo still mulling its options, Yang says

Yahoo has not reached a decision about Microsoft´s acquisition offer and is considering ˝a wide range of potential strategic alternatives,˝ Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang said in an e-mail to employees on Wednesday.
In the e-mail, which was addressed to ˝yahoos˝ and filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Yang said the Yahoo board is still reviewing the deal and will ˝take the time it needs to do it right.˝

˝Our board is thoughtfully evaluating a wide range of potential strategic alternatives in what is a complex and evolving landscape,˝ he wrote in the e-mail, typed in all lowercase letters.

Microsoft announced its unsolicited bid for Yahoo last Friday, offering to pay US$44.6 billion for the company, or 62 percent over Yahoo´s closing share price Thursday. The deal would greatly expand Microsoft´s search and advertising business and could help it to compete better with Google online.

Yahoo is understood to be lukewarm on the offer. The company hopes a rival suitor will emerge with a counteroffer, or that it can forge a deal with Google that will allow it to remain independent, according to Wednesday´s Wall Street Journal newspaper, which cited unnamed sources.

However, analysts have said it is unlikely another company could match Microsoft´s sizeable offer, and a business deal between Yahoo and Google could raise antitrust concerns because of Google´s already dominant market position.

In the e-mail, Yang thanked the Yahoo staff for staying focused on their work amid the turmoil. The company has hired ˝top advisors˝ to assist it through the process and is focused on maximizing value for its shareholders, he said.

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