Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO) may end up kicking and screaming on its way to the altar, but still appears headed toward a marriage with Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT).
The latest fling -- which involved rumors this week that Yahoo! was courting News Corp. (NYSE: NWS) in a complicated alliance that also featured private equity involvement -- was shot down in the market almost as soon as it was floated. In the deal, News Corp. would reportedly get a 20% stake in Yahoo! while handing off its MySpace social networking property to Yahoo!
For such a deal to fly, however, Yahoo! managers would have to show its value tops Microsoft's current $31 a share, $44.6 billion offer, or risk a revolt from shareholders and years in the courtroom defending their actions.
