SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- July 20, 1999 --
Yahoo! Inc.
(Nasdaq: YHOO) today announced it has completed its acquisition
of broadcast.com inc., the Web's leading aggregator and broadcaster
of streaming audio and video programming. The combination of
Yahoo! and broadcast.com expands the unique, rich audio and video
content available throughout Yahoo!'s global network serving
80 million unique users per month. The acquisition also provides
additional distribution for content and services partners and
expands the business services and Fusion Marketing Online™
(FMO) programs available to Yahoo! advertisers and businesses.
Yahoo! plans to integrate broadcast.com content and services
during the third quarter of 1999.
"We successfully completed the broadcast.com acquisition
ahead of schedule and are moving swiftly to integrate the company's
audio and video programming, business services, and advertising
programs into Yahoo!," said Jeff Mallett, Yahoo!'s president
and chief operating officer. "This acquisition is a natural
fit for both companies as well as our customers. As a result,
we plan to deliver an even richer Web experience to our users
worldwide as well as expanded business services, marketing, and
distribution opportunities for our respective clients."
Integrated Multimedia Programming
Broadcast.com is the leading aggregator and broadcaster of streaming
media programming on the Web with the network infrastructure
and expertise to deliver or "stream" hundreds of live
and on-demand audio and video programs over the Internet and
intranets. The broadcast.com site will remain the central aggregation
site where users can access a vast array of audio and video programming
on the Web. In addition, broadcast.com inc., now Yahoo! Broadcast
Services, will integrate rich audio and video programming into
popular vertical areas in Yahoo!'s global network, including
Yahoo! News, Yahoo! Finance, Yahoo! Sports, Yahoo! Auctions,
Yahoo! Shopping, and Yahoo! Music. Yahoo! Broadcast Services
features programming from 420 radio stations and networks, 56
television stations and cable networks, and game broadcasts and
other programming for more than 450 college and professional
sports teams. Additionally, the service delivers a comprehensive
selection of programming including business events, full-length
CDs, and full-length audio books. This content is available
to Web users through the scalable, digital distribution network
broadcast.com has built, which delivers high-speed, high-quality
audio and video through virtually any delivery mechanism or access
device.
Advanced Multimedia Advertising
The combination of Yahoo! and broadcast.com accelerates the ability
of advertisers and merchants to promote their businesses and
products through rich, scalable, multi-dimensional audio and
video advertising and programming. The integration of Yahoo!
Broadcast Services further expands Yahoo!'s FMO integrated marketing
strategy for clients worldwide. FMO is designed to leverage
Yahoo!'s significant worldwide audience, traffic, and database
to provide customized and measurable marketing solutions. FMO
combines a full range of marketing options from targeted advertising,
promotions and direct marketing to enable businesses to conduct
online commerce, provide merchandising services, and support
loyalty programs. Through the acquisition, Yahoo! is adding
multimedia advertising, custom broadcasting, audio and video
hosting, and production and programming of live events to its
extensive suite of FMO marketing services.
"With Yahoo! Broadcast Services, our advertisers and
merchants can integrate audio and video elements to create new
interactive multimedia advertising programs for our extensive
global audience," said Anil Singh, Yahoo!'s senior vice
president of sales. Clients such as Dell, Ford, IBM, Microsoft,
and Volvo already use Yahoo! and broadcast.com business and marketing
services.
Yahoo! Broadcast Services Organization
Broadcast.com, now Yahoo! Broadcast Services, will continue
to be located in Dallas, Texas, where it will operate as a business
unit of Yahoo! Inc. Mark Cuban, chairman and president, and
Todd Wagner, CEO of broadcast.com have been named vice presidents
of Yahoo!. They will continue to have day-to-day operating and
management responsibility for Yahoo! Broadcast Services, and
will provide technical, operational and strategic direction to
provide streaming content and services to the global Yahoo! network
and business services clients. Yahoo! Broadcast Services' business
services sales group and media sales force will be integrated
into Yahoo!'s sales organization. The broadcast.com Web site
will be integrated into Yahoo!'s network production group. Yahoo!
plans to continue expanding Yahoo! Broadcast Services, which
currently has 335 employees.
Expanded Business Services
Yahoo! Broadcast Services is the latest component of the
comprehensive suite of business services Yahoo! offers to enable
companies to conduct business online and reach large audiences.
Broadcast.com is a leading provider of turnkey corporate communications
solutions on the Web, including product launches, seminars, keynote
addresses, distance learning, annual shareholder meetings, quarterly
earnings calls, and investor roadshows. The combination of Yahoo!
and broadcast.com provides a broader range of targeted distribution
services throughout the Yahoo! and broadcast.com networks, building
on business services Yahoo! has previously announced including
integrated external and internal content solutions for corporate
clients, intranet communication and information services, site
and store creation and hosting services, and small business tools
and information. Yahoo! also offers PC and device manufacturers
a comprehensive solution that results in easier consumer access
to content services on the Web. In addition, Yahoo! has the
ability to enable businesses to deliver content and services
to a wide array of non-PC and wireless devices.
The broadcast.com acquisition is being accounted for as a
pooling of interests. Yahoo! will exchange approximately 28,645,000
shares of Yahoo! common stock for approximately 37,096,000 shares
of broadcast.com common stock. Additionally, Yahoo! will convert
approximately 6,633,000 broadcast.com stock options into approximately
5,122,000 Yahoo! stock options. Yahoo! expects to record a one-time
charge of approximately $22 million in the third fiscal quarter
of 1999 relating to the broadcast.com acquisition
About Yahoo!
Yahoo! Inc. (Nasdaq: YHOO) is a global Internet media company
that offers a branded network of comprehensive information, communication
and shopping services to 80 million users worldwide. As the first
online navigational guide to the Web, www.yahoo.com
is the leading guide in terms of traffic, advertising, household
and business user reach, and is one of the most recognized brands
associated with the Internet. The company's global Web network
includes 19 World properties. Yahoo! has offices in Europe, the
Asia Pacific, South America, Canada and the United States, and
is headquartered in Santa Clara, Calif.
This announcement contains forward-looking statements that
involve risks and uncertainties including the ability to successfully
integrate the two companies, and to realize the synergies and
other perceived advantages resulting from this acquisition, including
those relating to Yahoo!'s ability to grow its user and advertiser
bases, dependence on third-party content providers, availability
of streaming media technology, the ability to scale broadcast.com's
operations, and to achieve expectations for anticipated financial
results based on the combined entity. More information about
potential factors that could affect Yahoo!'s ability to make
this acquisition successful and continue to grow the business
is included in the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the
year ended Dec. 31, 1998, as amended, the company's Quarterly
Report on Form 10-Q for the period ended March 31, 1999, and
the company's Current Report on Form 8-K/A and the company's
Registration Statement on Form S-4 filed June 8, 1999, including
(without limitation) under the captions, "Management's Discussion
and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations,"
"Risk Factors," "Competition," and "Proprietary
Rights," which are on file with the Securities and Exchange
Commission (http://www.sec.gov).