Yahoo CEO: Expect Approval For Microsoft Deal In 1Q
SINGAPORE -(Dow Jones)- Yahoo Inc. (YHOO) expects to gain regulatory approval
for its plan to enter a 10-year Internet search partnership with Microsoft Corp.
(MSFT) and to complete the deal by the first quarter of next year, Yahoo Chief
Executive Carol Bartz said Tuesday.
"There is no delay," Bartz told reporters at an event in Singapore. "We expect
(the deal) in the first quarter."
Yahoo and Microsoft agreed on the deal in July in an effort to compete more
aggressively with market leader Google Inc. (GOOG). The U.S. Justice Department
in September said that the deal was entering a "second request" phase, which
indicates that it requires more detailed scrutiny.
It remains unclear whether European Union regulators will launch a formal
antitrust review of the deal, although they have been in discussions with
Microsoft and Yahoo.
Bartz also said that the company aims to boost its operating margins to
between 15% and 20% in the next two to three years.
-By Costas Paris, Dow Jones Newswires; +65 6415 4151; costas.paris@
dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
11-10-090137ET
Copyright (c) 2009 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
|