Yahoo"s stock price went up over 2.3 percent in trading today after a new rumor hit the Internet that the founders were thinking about taking the company private. Reuters reports that Yahoo co-founder Jerry Yang has been in discussions with private equity firms with that possibility in the cards. If Yahoo makes such a move it would involve both Yang and Yahoo"s other co-founder David Filo rolling over their stock in the company.
After losing revenue for the past few years, Yahoo"s board of directors have apparently decided to take some drastic measures in the last month. The board fired its CEO Carol Bartz and later admitted in a leaked email to employees that its financial advisors were "fielding inquiries from multiple parties that have already expressed interest in a number of potential options." That would indicate that it has received offers from other companies about a possible sale for Yahoo. Microsoft has been among the companies rumored to be interested in Yahoo.
In related news, Yahoo seems to have pulled out of the running among the companies interested in purchasing the Hulu streaming TV show and movie service. The Wall Street Journal reports that Yahoo"s own internal issues are the cause. That still leaves Dish Network, Amazon and Google as possible bidders for Hulu. The story claims that Dish Network offered $1.9 billion for Hulu. Google has reportedly offered more money but with extra conditions. Hulu"s owners might still decide that none of the offers would be good enough and as a result they may keep the company in their hands.