Yahoo! (YHOO) climbed in pre-market trading, despite the company reportedly denying reports of a $20 billion bid by Microsoft (MSFT) for its search business but also on entering into a mobile search deal with Virgin Media (VMED).
The stock was up 47 cents just before 8:30 am ET, advancing to $11.98. If pre-market gains hold, the stock will open at its highest level since mid-November.
Conflicting reports are swirling over a potential deal involving software giant Microsoft and search engine Yahoo Inc. While a London Times report said Microsoft is negotiating a deal to buy the search business of Yahoo, a popular blog, citing an official said to be involved in the deal, precluded the possibility of such an arrangement.
According to the Times report, Microsoft intends to support a new management team led by ex-AOL Chairman and CEO Jonathan Miller and former Fox Interactive Media President Ross Levinsohn to take control of the search business. The software giant will provide $5 billion to back the duo and the two executives would raise an additional $5 billion from external investors.
However, a blog post by the Wall Street Journal's All Things Digital, owned by News Corp. (NWS), has termed the report "total fiction". The influential U.S. blog said Levinsohn denied the report. The Times of London is also owned by News Corp.
Yahoo said that it entered into a deal with Virgin Media) under which Yahoo! OneSearch will be the exclusive search service on Virgin Media's new enhanced mobile portal in the U.K. The Virgin Media mobile portal will be available to consumers on December 8, 2008 and will provide news, music, video, games and entertainment, as well as mobile search experience to consumers
Yahoo and Virgin Media plan to deliver mobile sponsored search results and contextually served sponsored listings within the Virgin Media mobile portal early 2009.
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