By Brandon Bailey, Technology Writer
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) --Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer stands to collect a $44 million severance package if she leaves after Verizon completes its purchase of the once-mighty internet company.
Mayer hasn't announced plans to leave, but industry observers say she's unlikely to stay after the $4.8 billion sale closes early next year.
The 41-year-old executive stands to collect $3 million in cash and almost $41 million worth of stock options and awards under a "golden parachute" agreement described in a regulatory filing Friday. In a filing last spring, Yahoo said Mayer could walk away with $55 million in compensation, but the estimates can vary with the value of Yahoo's stock and the date she leaves.
Mayer has been CEO for four years but failed to reverse a long-standing slide in Yahoo's advertising business. After an unsuccessful effort to spin off its investment in the Chinese internet giant Alibaba, Yahoo Inc. began entertaining offers for its core business earlier this year.
Yahoo weighed a variety of offers, according to the proxy statement filed Friday. One was a merger proposal from Yahoo Japan, a separate company that Sunnyvale, California-based Yahoo co-owns with Japanese tech giant SoftBank. Another bid came from an unnamed group that asked Yahoo co-founder David Filo to consider financing its bid.
Filo, who sits on Yahoo's board of directors, agreed to talk with the group and recused himself from participating in further board discussions about a possible sale, according to the statement. The filing doesn't say if Filo ultimately decided to join the group. But in the end, the unnamed group submitted a $4.35 billion bid that was lower than Verizon's.
Verizon hasn't spelled out its plans but it's expected to continue operating at least some of Yahoo's popular internet sites under the familiar brand, while combining some of its ad business with the AOL operation it acquired earlier. A separate holding company, under a new name, will keep Yahoo's stake in Alibaba and some other investments.
SMPTE elects board officers, regional governors
SMPTE®,the home of media professionals, technologists, and engineers, has revealed the board officers and regional governors who will serve terms beginning in January 2025.
Three new officers--Richard Welsh as SMPTE president, Eric Gsell as SMPTE executive VP, and Polly Hickling as SMPTE Education VP--have been elected for a two-year term from Jan. 1, 2025, to Dec. 31, 2026. One SMPTE officer, Lisa Hobbs, will be continuing her service as SMPTE secretary and treasurer for another two-year term. Additionally, Raymond Yeung will be stepping into the role of standards VP on Jan. 1, 2025.
“SMPTE’s membership has spoken,” said SMPTE interim executive director Sally-Ann D’Amato. “These officers have been tasked with an important responsibility, one each of them is prepared to tackle head-on. These next two years are looking bright for SMPTE!”
In addition to the officers, 10 regional governors were elected by the Society to serve two-year 2025-2026 terms.
These include the following regional governors, re-elected to continue their service:
Asia-Pacific Region Governor
Tony Ngai, Society of Motion Imaging Ltd.
EMEA - Central & South America Region Governor
Fernando Bittencourt, FB Consultant
United Kingdom Region Governor
Chris Johns, Sky UK.
USA - Central Region Governor
William T. Hayes, Consultant
USA - Eastern Region Governor
Dover Jeanne Mundt, Riedel Communications
USA - Western Region Governor
Jeffrey F. Way, Open Drives
Also elected were four newcomers to the SMPTE Board:
Canada Region Governor
Jonathan Jobin, Grass Valley
USA - Hollywood Region Governor
Allan Schollnick, Voxx... Read More