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The publisher of the Daily Mail has confirmed it is in talks with private equity companies about a takeover of Yahoo.
Ailing tech firm Yahoo, which has a market capitalisation of $38bn (£27bn), put its core business up for sale in February with bids due by 18 April.
Daily Mail and General Trust, the parent company of the Daily Mail, has confirmed that it has approached companies interested in a potential bid for Yahoo.
DMGT has been heavily focused on building its operation in the US, which includes the acquisition of news site Elite Daily and an upcoming move into TV with a syndicated news show with Phil McGraw, known as Dr Phil.
“Given the success of dailymail.com and Elite Daily, we have been in discussions with a number of parties who are potential bidders [for Yahoo],” said a spokesman for DMGT. “Discussions are at a very early stage and there is no certainty that any transaction will take place.”
One scenario is DMGT takes on the news and media properties in their entirety after a private equity deal.
The other is the private equity company takes a stake in the Daily Mail’s digital operation once enlarged by Yahoo’s properties. DMGT would always be the majority shareholder in that scenario.
Yahoo has struggled since the rise of giants such as Google and the emergence of newer players such as Facebook and Snapchat.
In February, embattled chief executive Marissa Mayer announced a strategic review, which included exploring a sale, cutting 1,700 staff, 15% of its global workforce, and shutting five foreign offices and seven digital magazines.
Nevertheless, Yahoo still attracts a huge web audience, especially in the US, with a major editorial operation across finance, sport and video.
It is understood it is seeking a linkup with a private equity firm that would take over Yahoo, with a publisher then taking over the news and media properties.
The US has become the Daily Mail’s prime driver of digital growth, with revenues growing 66% in the three months to the end of December.
A DMGT spokesman refused to elaborate on the nature of a prospective deal, the news of which was broken by the Wall Street Journal.
“We have no further comment at this time,” said the spokesman. “Further updates will be provided as appropriate.”
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Daily Mail publisher in talks with companies over Yahoo takeover
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