Yang deposed as CEO at Yahoo: Search is on for new savior

More than a year after taking the helm at Yahoo Inc., Jerry Yang is out as the company’s board of directors has initiated a search for a new CEO.
Yang has been under scrutiny since the $47.5 billion bid by Microsoft Corp. to take over the company failed six months ago. According to the deal, Microsoft was offering to pay $33 per share to buy the company. Yang reportedly countered with $37 per share, causing Microsoft to withdraw their offer.
Yahoo’s stock closed on Monday at $10.63, but was trading about 10% higher today.
Yang, who started the Internet search engine with Stanford University classmate David Filo in 1994, will return to his former role as “Chief Yahoo” once a new CEO is hired, according to the company. Yang will also continue to serve on the board of directors and will help board Chairman Roy Bostock assess potential candidates and determine finalists for consideration. The company said the search for a new leader will include both internal and external candidates. The company has also hired an executive search firm, Heidrick & Struggles, to help in the process.
In a statement issued Monday, Yang said he is stepping aside to do “what is best for our franchise.”
“Having set Yahoo on a new, more open path, the time is right for me to transition the CEO role and our global talent to a new leader,” Yang said.
Yang, 40, took over as CEO in June 2007 at the board’s request. He led the company through a strategic repositioning and transformation of its platform.
In a statement Bostock said Yang has led the repositioning of the company on an open platform model and improved costs and revenues.
“We are deeply grateful to Jerry for his many contributions as CEO over the past 18 months, and we are pleased that he plans to stay actively involved at Yahoo as a key executive and member of the board,” Bostock said.
After Microsoft’s bid fell apart, billionaire investor Carl Icahn led a shareholder revolt and also called for Yang’s resignation.
In a note to investors, USB analyst Benjamin Schachter wrote that the board may opt for an external candidate and more meaningful restructuring of the company.
Schachter also wrote that with Yang gone, Microsoft may once again bid to buy the company.
“We still believe Microsoft will eventually own Yahoo,” according to Schachter’s note. “Jerry moving out of the CEO role may accelerate this.”
Possible replacements listed by Schachter include Yahoo President Sue Decker; former AOL L.L.C. CEO Jon Miller; former eBay Inc. CEO Meg Whitman; and former Yahoo COO Dan Rosensweig.
Yahoo, which lags behind Google Inc. in the Internet search engine market, has been able to make some strides in wireless. Earlier this year, AT&T Mobility tapped Yahoo to serve as its on-deck search vendor. A Nielsen Mobile study also showed that Yahoo is the leading mobile Internet brand for U.S. consumers, drawing 53% more traffic than Google.