Ailing Internet company Yahoo has set an April 11 deadline for potential buyers to submit bid proposals for its core assets, including its search, mail and news websites, the Wall Street Journal reported.
In their proposals, Yahoo is asking suitors to include information about what assets they’d like to acquire, how much they’re willing to pay, how they would finance the purchase, and what conditions or approvals would need to be met to move forward with an agreement, the report said.
The Wall Street Journal said Yahoo’s financial agents have already reached out to a number of prospective buyers, including U.S. wireless carrier Verizon, media company Time, Inc., and private equity firms TPG and KKR & Co. A recent report from Reuters indicated software and electronics company Microsoft may also be a player in the bidding.
Earlier this month, Yahoo CFO Ken Goldman said the company is also looking to shed $1 billion to $3 billion in “non-core units or businesses,” including the company’s patents, land holdings and campus property.
In February, Verizon CEO Lowell McAdam said the carrier would consider purchasing some Yahoo assets “at the right price.” According to McAdam, some of Yahoo’s assets would make a good fit for the carrier’s AOL business, which Verizon sees as a future growth engine for the company.
Yahoo’s move to get bids on the table in the next two weeks follows news last week that Yahoo investor Starboard Value LP nominated an entirely new nine member board for the company after complaining Yahoo was dragging its feet with the sale process.
The Wall Street Journal said securing bids in April might allow Yahoo to complete a deal by early summer, ahead of an anticipated shareholder meeting that will decide the fate of Yahoo’s board.