In a surprising turn of events, Carl Icahn agreed yesterday to call off his proxy fight against Yahoo – in exchange for seats on the board. One for him, one supposedly for former AOL exec Jonathon Miller (recommended by Yang), and a third for another director to be chosen from Icahn’s stable.
This directly after another large stockholder, Legg Mason, jumped in on Yang’s side of the fight late last week. It is widely speculated that either Icahn saw his chances of a successful board overthrow dwindling, and jumped at the chance to insinuate himself into the board, or else that it is a perfectly viable solution to him allowing him a guaranteed say in further negotiations and the chance to push for a deal with Microsoft from the inside.
The stockholders meeting on August first may be a trifle anticlimactic ( all those proxy cards, what a waste) but at least it’s over – for now. Knowing Icahn, there will be waves in the future.
Jonathon Miller is an intriguing candidate for a board spot, having left AOL under a cloud of rumor and conflict right as revenue started to rise. Ousted from Time Warner prior to a massive restructuring of AOL, Miller became a partner at Velocity Interactive Group, a venture capital firm. Yang must see something in the strategist to feel he would be a good addition to the Yahoo board, and Icahn seems agreeable.
Three seats will by no means give Icahn control of the board, but at this stage in the game perhaps he feels the tide has turned, and it is the best he is likely to get. Icahn has proven over and over that he is a force to be reckoned with, and it remains to be seen how much influence he will be able to wield once firmly entrenched within Yahoo’s inner circle.