After Microsoft failed to take over Yahoo! (NASDAQ:YHOO) in February 2008, before the crisis, in exchange for 44.6 billion dollars, or rather Yahoo! missed opportunity to sell for that amount, now that the company has a market capitalization of almost two thirds less than what it was two years ago, a Chinese billionaire laid eyes on the e-mail world leader.
Jack Ma, founder and CEO of Alibaba, an online commerce giant, would like to buy Yahoo!, if the opportunity arises by itself and if discussions with other potential buyers about purchase options are successful, writes Reuters.
Asked if Alibaba could be inclined to purchase the American company which is now suffering, Ma told an audience at Stanford University that he would be “very interested in Yahoo!”.
He added later that is very eager to buy Yahoo!, besides the package that he has in the Alibaba company.
“China is already ours”
Asked which part of Yahoo! is of interest to him, Ma replied: “The whole part of Yahoo!”. “China is already ours, right? It is already in our pocket”, added Ma, referring to the control that it has on the Chinese market.
Yahoo! shares jumped 5% to $13.80 after the session closing on Friday.
Yahoo! acquisition could help Ma expand his online empire to one of the biggest Internet players in the world.
Ma also noted that he intends to spend next year in the United States to learn more about the country and the American market.