Yahoo! Founder To Step Down As CEO

Board Will Boot Jerry Yang From Top Spot As Soon As Replacement Is Found; Refusal To Sell To Microsoft Seen As Reason

(AP)  Yahoo Inc. co-founder Jerry Yang is stepping down as chief executive, ending a rocky reign marked by his refusal to sell the Internet company to Microsoft Corp. for $47.5 billion — more than triple Yahoo's current market value.

The change in command announced Monday won't be completed until Yahoo finds his replacement. The Sunnyvale-based company said it is interviewing candidates inside and outside Yahoo in a search led by its chairman, Roy Bostock, and the executive recruitment firm Heidrick & Struggles.

"Jerry and the board have had an ongoing dialogue about succession timing, and we all agree that now is the right time to make the transition to a new CEO who can take the company to the next level," Bostock said.

Yang, who started Yahoo with Stanford University classmate David Filo in 1994, will revert to "Chief Yahoo," a titular role he filled before replacing former movie studio boss Terry Semel as CEO in June 2007. He will also remain on Yahoo's board of directors.

"I will continue to focus on global strategy and to do everything I can to help Yahoo realize its full potential and enhance its leading culture of technology and product excellence and innovation," Yang said in a statement.

Although Yang had publicly expressed his desire to remain at the helm, Yahoo's board faced intensifying pressure to cast him aside as the company's shares plunged to its lowest levels since early 2003. The stock fell 19 cents Monday to close at $10.63 — a fraction of Microsoft's last bid of $33 per share in early May.

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer huffily withdrew the offer after Yang sought $37 per share. The negotiating breakdown triggered a shareholder revolt led by billionaire investor Carl Icahn, who called for Yang's ouster in July before reaching a truce that put him and two allies on Yahoo's 11-member board.

Yang, 40, had been pursuing a strategy that he thought would prove Yahoo was worth more than Microsoft was willing to pay, but the rapidly deteriorating economy made a comeback seem increasingly unlikely. As it is, Yahoo's earnings have been eroding for three years, disillusioning investors amid a management exodus that indicated even Yang's own troops were losing faith in him.

[whitemale08]

Yahoo was never a ''real company'' in the first place and neither is Micro-soft.

All of these companies produce absolutely nothing that justifies the billions compensated to their owners.

If they did then that means the inventor of the ''wheel'' would own the entire world fee-simple.

Look, all of these interenet companies are nothing more then ''financial instruments'' composed of krap collaterized debt garbage called ''structured-finance products'' used to loot a bunch of people in the 90''s and now share-holders.

This is another example why over a Quadrillion in Derivative-swap krap and ''structured-finance'' garbage has to go away.

We cannot continue to prop up phony fake pretend-businesses with phony profits and the rest of it because they are not vital to our economy.

Stop pretending that krap has value and just get rid of it...even krap doesn''t want to own krap anymore.

[entrepreneux]

I don''t know who is the "dumber billionaire nerd" ...
(-- now, there is an oxymoron for you: "dumb" billionaire)
... Microsofts, Steve "the luckiest dormroom assignment in history" Balmer for offering $47.5 billion. (He was Bill Gates college roommate.)

...or Yahoo "dumber" billionaire nerd Jerry Yang. For not taking the $47.5 billion !

Both of these guys are clearly egotistical idiots.
Now if they could just use their money to buy some brains.
Nerds with money. Are still nerds. And this country is at the mercy of them and other "Billionaire Boys Club" members like them -- Buffet etc.


You want to fix it ? There is only one way.

And you start at the absolute ROOT of the evil.
The way Chavez did in Venezuela.

You NATIONALIZE the: "obscene profit, $500 million executive golden parachute" oil companies.

And you do it by force. Military force. With US soldiers.

And whether you (or any of these egomaniacal billionaires) likes it or not...

As this economy gets worse... that day... is becoming more... and more inevitable.


"Capitalism !" Yes. Fine. -- But WITHOUT unbelievable greed and stupidity !

[wango2007-2009]

I''ll bet Terry Semel is laughing his a*ss off now. And well he should.

Yang is such a loser. He go now and not wait for a replacement to be named. Just the fact that he''ll be gone will be a benefit to all.

Even the title of "Chief Yahoo" is too good for Yang. He has no shame. He should just disappear on a long, long trip or something.

[outwest6]

Old Jerry cost an awful lot of folks a big chunk of money from their retirement accounts when he decided to torpedo the MS purchase deal over his ego, he shouldn''t just be out as CEO, he should be out. Shareholders deserve representation that does what is needed to profit the stockholders investment.

[shanev137]

I''m surprised it took the board this long to come to it''s senses. I knew the guy was a moron a long time ago and I''ve never even met him.

[jerr11]

Yahoo''s destined for the dustheap of internet history.

Pure arrogance, that''s jerry''s downfall.

But he''s not worried. He''s got his millions stashed away. It''s the stockholders that are getting screwed - AGAIN!

[ubrew12]

Too bad google couldn''t obtain a guaranteed monopoly from the gov''t like Microsoft did.

The only way to make big bucks in the ''free market'' is to trash it, which Microsoft did decades ago.

Now, Microsoft turns out shabby products and seems intent on going exactly where GM is today. I guess they must have learned something from the automakers after all...