Yahoo signs off in Oath rebranding
INTERNET pioneer Yahoo ended its two-decade run as an independent company on Tuesday, completing the sale of its core online assets to telecom giant Verizon.
Yahoo’s Chief Executive Marissa Mayer resigned as expected, as Verizon finalised the $4.48 billion deal integrating the Yahoo internet operations into a new unit called Oath, which includes another former sector leader, AOL.
Tim Armstrong, former CEO of AOL, now holds the same title at Oath, a division in Verizon’s Media and Telematics organisation.
“We’re building the future of brands using powerful technology, trusted content and differentiated data,” Armstrong said in a statement.
Oath includes a number of other digital media operations including HuffPost, formerly known as the Huffington Post.
Verizon has made no indication of how it will use the Yahoo brand – which is used by over a billion people worldwide – but indicated that it is keeping the names Yahoo Sports, Yahoo Finance, Yahoo Mail and more.
Some reports have said more than 1,000 jobs would be eliminated as a result of the merger, but statements from Yahoo and Verizon on Tuesday made no mention of any cuts.
Yahoo’s sale caps a long decline from when it had a peak market value of some $125 billion in 2000.