Yahoo weighs bids from Verizon, TPG and YP Holdings

Verizon Communications will vie with at least one other company and a private equity firm in the bidding for Yahoo, sources told Bloomberg News.

The Internet portal received offers from suitors including Verizon, private equity firm TPG and YP Holdings, the digital advertising business of what was formerly called Yellowpages.com, said the sources, who asked not to be identified because the process is private. Yahoo had set Monday as the deadline for initial bids as it winnows down which companies are in the running to acquire its Web operations.

For Verizon, Yahoo represents a strategic investment. The company would probably combine the online businesses with AOL, which Verizon acquired last year. Private equity buyers often seek ways to cut costs and improve operations at targets before selling them off or combining them with other assets down the road.

Yahoo — the main on-ramp for millions of people exploring the Internet for the first time in the 1990s — has failed to keep up with audience and advertising changes that have led to the rise of Facebook, Twitter and Google. The company’s decision to consider offers for its core business follows years of failed turnaround attempts by chief executive officer Marissa Mayer, who took over in 2012. In recent months, strategy shifts have brought increased investor criticism, including a move by activist Starboard Value to replace the entire Yahoo board.

This story was originally published April 19, 2016 at 2:30 PM with the headline "Yahoo weighs bids from Verizon, TPG and YP Holdings."