Verizon Communications has reportedly tasked Tim Armstrong, CEO of its AOL unit, with leading preliminary discussions about a potential bid for Yahoo. Armstrong held talks with Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer in 2014, before Verizon bought AOL, about a potential combination of the two internet companies.
Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) has reportedly tasked Tim Armstrong, CEO of its AOL unit, with leading preliminary discussions about a potential bid for Yahoo (NASDAQ:YHOO).
Lowell McAdam, CEO of the US telco, confirmed yesterday that the company is considering a bid for the Silicon Valley-based tech giant.
Asked in an interview with CNBC whether Verizon would consider adding Yahoo to its business, McAdam said “We have to understand the trends. But at the right price, I think marrying up some of their assets with AOL and the leadership would be good”.
His comments came just days after Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer unveiled the company’s latest turnaround plan and chairman Maynard Webb said the board was open to “strategic alternatives”.
While Verizon has not mandated bankers to formulate an offer and there have been no formal talks, Armstrong (pictured), who assisted with the telco’s US$250m acquisition of advertising technology firm Millennial Media last year, is taking a lead in preliminary discussions, Bloomberg cited a person with knowledge of the situation saying.
Last May, Verizon paid US$4.4bn for AOL, which is now in charge of advertising sales for the telco’s mobile content service go90, launched last autumn.
According to the Bloomberg report, Armstrong, who runs AOL as a semi-autonomous media and advertising business, will pick up on talks held with Mayer in 2014, when he was looking at a combination of AOL and Yahoo. Both worked for Google before leaving to head up their respective companies.
Verizon has been linked to the asset since last December, when CFO Fran Shammo said the company would look at it under the right circumstances.
