Report: Yahoo Nearing $1.1B Acquisition of Tumblr

(AP) Report: Yahoo nearing $1.1B acquisition of Tumblr
NEW YORK
Yahoo may be on the verge of closing its biggest acquisition under CEO Marissa Mayer, as she tries to attract more traffic and advertising to the Internet company’s website.

The technology news site All Things D is reporting that Yahoo’s board will meet Sunday night to consider whether to approve a proposed $1.1 billion acquisition of Tumblr, a popular online service for sharing stories, photos and other content.

The report from All Things D cited anonymous sources.

If Yahoo’s board signs off on the deal, it could be announced Monday.

In an invitation sent Friday, Yahoo Inc. promised to unveil “something special” Monday evening in New York. The event is being held in a Times Squares lounge located about two miles away from Tumblr’s headquarters.

Mayer will be there to make the announcement.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer is promising to unveil “something special” Monday in New York as she tries to attract more traffic and advertising to the Internet company.

The Sunnyvale, Calif., company gave no further details Friday other than that Mayer will be discussing a product. Reporters are being invited to attend the 5 p.m. event at a lounge located in New York’s Times Square.

Mayer has been emphasizing the need for better mobile applications and more video since she became Yahoo’s CEO 10 months ago after helping to build Google into the Internet’s most powerful company during a 13-year career working there.

The invitations to Monday’s event were sent out amid speculation that Yahoo might form a partnership or buy a stake in Tumblr, a content-sharing service that has become a popular application for mobile devices.

The Tumblr talk was spurred by a post on the technology site All Things D, which reported Mayer has been in discussions about a possible deal with Tumblr CEO David Karp, who started the service in 2007. Citing anonymous sources close to the situation, All Things said Yahoo might even buy Tumblr for as much as $1 billion.

Tumblr is based in New York, about two miles from where Mayer is making her announcement.

Yahoo Inc. has won over investors under Mayer, even though the company’s revenue is still barely growing even as advertisers are spending more money on the Internet. Yahoo’s stock price has risen 69 percent under Mayer’s leadership.

Yahoo’s stock closed down 6 cents at $26.52 on Friday.