Yahoo buys US$1 billion stake in Alibaba
(AFP)
Updated: 2005-08-11 22:01

Yahoo Inc. signed a deal to buy 40 percent of Alibaba.com for one billion dollars cash while handing over the running of its China operations to the Chinese online retailer, AFP reported.

Alibaba.com founder Jack Ma(L) and Yahoo chief operating officer Daniel Rosensweig give a joint press conference to announce their deal in Beijing. Yahoo Inc. bought 40 percent of Alibaba.com for one billion USD cash while handing over the running of its China operations to the Chinese online retailer. [AFP]

The investment is the biggest by a foreign company to gain access to China's 100 million net users and creates an e-commerce giant, with the combined entity valued at four billion dollars.

It gives Yahoo 35 percent voting rights in Alibaba.com, making it the largest strategic investor in its Chinese partner. In return Alibaba wins the exclusive right to use and grow the Yahoo brand in China.

The new company will be managed by Alibaba, whose chief executive Jack Ma will be chairman of the four-person board. Yahoo will retain one seat.

"We don't look at this as Yahoo not being able to succeed on its own. Quite the opposite," said Yahoo chief operating officer Daniel Rosensweig.

"We look at this as an opportunity to get much bigger, much faster, working with a great management team."

Alibaba, founded in 1999 and based in the eastern China city of Hangzhou, is among a clutch of fast-growing Chinese Internet startups.

It has a joint-venture partnership with Softbank in a popular Chinese online auction business, called Taobao, and owns online payment system AliPay as well as its flagship trading site Alibaba.com.

Page:

1

2

3

Close

Chimpanzee suffers from smoking addiction The tide is high but they're holding on China, Russia military drills stage landing

Today's Top News     Top China News
EU, China begin talks on textile row         Joint forces storm beaches at climax of drills         Taiwan students on mainland given level fees         Japan, China to jointly develop 4G mobile         China says market to decide yuan's value         CCTV sends record invitations for festival	Temasek close to buying BOC stake - FT       N. Korea nuclear talks likely as planned       Japan, China to jointly develop 4G mobile       Two bus accidents claim 33, injure 56       NPC debates further raising tax threshold       Farmers protest over alleged lead poisoning