Report: Wall Street Eyes Yahoo-Netflix Acquisition
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2398386,00.asp
The recent hiring of former PayPal president Scott Thompson as Yahoo's new CEO has given rise to an intriguing new rumor—the possibility that Yahoo may now acquire Netflix.
The news comes one day after Netflix CEO Reed Hastings said in a statement that his service delivered "more than two billion hours of TV shows and movies across 45 countries in the fourth quarter."
In the wake of the Thompson announcement, Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster appeared on CNBC (video below) and suggested that Yahoo might be interested in snapping up Netflix. "In the back of my mind, I wonder if they buy Netflix, that would make a lot of sense," he said.
As reported by Variety, Netflix's stock soared Wednesday after Hastings' statement and the Yahoo acquisition talk.
In a statement yesterday, Yahoo chairman Roy Bostock said "Yahoo is considering a wide range of opportunities for the company's business, as well as specific investments or dispositions of assets."
This latest talk is ironic given that Yahoo itself was the focus of acquisition rumors for most of last year.
Now boasting over 20 million streaming members in the United States, Canada and Latin America, Netflix has recently set its sights on truly competing with channels like HBO and Showtime by releasing its own original shows. In February Netflix will begin streaming a new show called Lilyhammer (about a New York gangster in Norway) fronted by Sopranos veteran character actor Steven Van Zandt. Later this year, the site will debut House of Cards, a one-hour political thriller starring Kevin Spacey and helmed by The Social Network director David Fincher.
Last month, in the wake of Netflix's disastrous Qwikster effort, there were rumors that Verizon would purchase the company. Verizon chief financial officer Fran Shammo, however, threw a bit of cold water on that rumor at a Wednesday investor conference.
"There's been a lot of rumors in the marketplace about what I'm buying and what I'm not buying: I'm not buying anything," Shammo said. "We are looking at a lot of different opportunities, but I would say they're opportunities more from a partnership or a revenue-sharing opportunity. This is not me going out and buying something. If I look at this, this is still a search-and-seek type effort about what do we want to do, what works for us."
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2398386,00.asp
The recent hiring of former PayPal president Scott Thompson as Yahoo's new CEO has given rise to an intriguing new rumor—the possibility that Yahoo may now acquire Netflix.
The news comes one day after Netflix CEO Reed Hastings said in a statement that his service delivered "more than two billion hours of TV shows and movies across 45 countries in the fourth quarter."
In the wake of the Thompson announcement, Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster appeared on CNBC (video below) and suggested that Yahoo might be interested in snapping up Netflix. "In the back of my mind, I wonder if they buy Netflix, that would make a lot of sense," he said.
As reported by Variety, Netflix's stock soared Wednesday after Hastings' statement and the Yahoo acquisition talk.
In a statement yesterday, Yahoo chairman Roy Bostock said "Yahoo is considering a wide range of opportunities for the company's business, as well as specific investments or dispositions of assets."
This latest talk is ironic given that Yahoo itself was the focus of acquisition rumors for most of last year.
Now boasting over 20 million streaming members in the United States, Canada and Latin America, Netflix has recently set its sights on truly competing with channels like HBO and Showtime by releasing its own original shows. In February Netflix will begin streaming a new show called Lilyhammer (about a New York gangster in Norway) fronted by Sopranos veteran character actor Steven Van Zandt. Later this year, the site will debut House of Cards, a one-hour political thriller starring Kevin Spacey and helmed by The Social Network director David Fincher.
Last month, in the wake of Netflix's disastrous Qwikster effort, there were rumors that Verizon would purchase the company. Verizon chief financial officer Fran Shammo, however, threw a bit of cold water on that rumor at a Wednesday investor conference.
"There's been a lot of rumors in the marketplace about what I'm buying and what I'm not buying: I'm not buying anything," Shammo said. "We are looking at a lot of different opportunities, but I would say they're opportunities more from a partnership or a revenue-sharing opportunity. This is not me going out and buying something. If I look at this, this is still a search-and-seek type effort about what do we want to do, what works for us."
