AOL/Yahoo: Deal Or No Deal?

For weeks now, the blogosphere has been buzzing that a deal between AOL and Yahoo is "imminent."

But according to Henry Blodget today, a senior source at Time Warner "emphatically" denies that Yahoo's acquisition of AOL is happening. In fact, a deal isn't even imminent.


In this same post Blodget both supports and denies rumors that an AOL-Yahoo deal is taking place. (Keep in mind he's also the one who broke the bogus story that Steve Jobs had a heart attack.) His original source claimed a formal announcement was set for tomorrow and even reported the sighting of a Yahoo 18-wheeler semi-truck by AOL's campus in Dulles.

Both AOL and Yahoo remain mum over a deal that's been talked about, at least in the blogosphere, for the past year.

Blodget surmises on some new details on the deal that may or may not be happening at the moment. Such as:

• Yahoo could acquire all of AOL, including its access business, which Blodget claims has real value since it's tied in with the content and advertising businesses. This means Time Warner can hand over AOL for "a less embarrassing price."
• The purchase price is in the $8-10 billion range. In an earlier post, Blodget pleaded with Yahoo not to overpay $8 billion for AOL. But with the access business now included, that price range makes sense, he says.

For now, we'll just stand by for Blodget's next post. Hopefully it will have a definite answer to deal or no deal.

Andrea Chalupa