Source: EPA/Britta Pedersen
The future of troubled tech giant Yahoo will soon become clearer, with shareholders are set to vote on the sale of the business to American telecommunications company Verizon on June 8.
A yes vote will end Yahoo chief executive Marissa Mayer’s five-year leadership at the company, during which Yahoo was plagued by two major security breaches. These breaches were considered so serious Verizon wiped $US350 million ($464 million) off the sale price, reports the New York Times.
However, filings to the Securities and Exchanges Commission reveals Mayer will reportedly receive $US186 million ($246 million) in compensation for her role as chief executive, comprising of Yahoo stock and stock options, if the sale goes ahead.
This is on top of Mayer’s already received salaries and bonuses, estimated to be worth approximately $US200 million ($265 million).
In preparation for the anticipated Verizon sale, Yahoo split the assets that will not be sold to Verizon and placed them under a new investment company Altaba Inc. The assets include stakes in Alibaba, Yahoo Japan, and Snap Inc, the parent company of of popular social media platform Snapchat.
At the time, the name change was poorly received by the public, with many criticising the name for being unmemorable and some likening it to the names of infectious diseases.
However, brand expert Michel Hogan told SmartCompany at the time the name change is unlikely to have any long-term effect on consumer perceptions.
“When people get all bent out of shape with names, I always point them back to how ridiculous it must have seemed when Steve Jobs renamed his company Apple,” Hogan said.
“There may be a longer term reason why they’re setting it up in this way.”
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