The promise of owning content to deliver ads fueled by mobile subscriber data was a powerful lure driving Verizon to acquire two of the web’s oldest and best-known media brands.
But despite CEO Hans Vestberg’s eventual disinterest in holding onto the legacy properties of AOL and Yahoo culminating in the telecom company’s sale of Verizon Media to Apollo Global Management announced earlier this week digital ad industry execs say regulatory pressures, tech industry privacy moves and internal restrictions on data sharing contributed to Verizon’s decision to unload its media and ad tech properties, including its ad tech stack and identity tech product, ConnectID.
Verizon to sell Yahoo, AOL for $5b to private equity firm
By AFP - May 04,2021 - Last updated at May 04,2021 This combination of photos shows the Yahoo logo displayed in front of the Yahoo headqarters in Sunnyvale, California and the AOL logo posted on a sign in front of the AOL Inc. offices in Palo Alto, California (AFP file photo)
WASHINGTON Verizon announced on Monday it was selling faded Internet stars Yahoo and AOL to a private equity firm for $5 billion, ending the media ambitions of the telecoms giant.
The deal with Apollo Global Management also includes the entire Verizon Media unit, including the advertising tech operations of the two brands.
Along with Yahoo, Apollo is getting AOL, TechCrunch, Ryot, Built By Girls and Flurry. Guru Gowrappan, who headed the division for Verizon, will be chief executive officer of Yahoo. Verizon will keep a 10% stake in the venture.
Apollo partner Reed Rayman said he hopes to take these primarily advertising-driven media brands and augment them with new products like subscription services and sports betting.
Those ambitions aren’t altogether different than the previous management’s, but Verizon, which was almost solely focused on expanding its wireless business into 5G, couldn’t find enough patience or resources to make its media foray a success.