Guardian Unlimited- The struggling internet company Yahoo has struck a pact with its billionaire critic Carl Icahn by giving the hedge fund activist a minority presence on its board to avoid a potentially tempestuous showdown at a shareholder meeting next month.
Facing crumbling support among Yahoo investors, Icahn yesterday abandoned his efforts to overthrow the leadership of the embattled Silicon Valley company and force its sale to Microsoft.
Instead, the 72-year-old Icahn & Co hedge fund manager is settling for an offer of three seats on Yahoo’s board. One director will stand down and the board will expand from nine to 11 members. Wall Street analysts greeted it as a qualified victory for Yahoo’s founder, Jerry Yang, who has pressed hard to maintain its independence and who waged an energetic campaign to discredit Icahn.
