• Reuters, Friday, July 11, 2008 12:45 PM

Yahoo shares fell on Thursday following comments from Rupert Murdoch that News Corp. was "very unlikely" to be involved in any kind of Yahoo transaction, and that the Microsoft saga would probably not end in a deal, either. When asked what he thought of Microhoo, Murdoch responded, "There won't be a deal. There's bad personal feelings."

Earlier this year, Microsoft offered to buy Yahoo for $47.5 billion, but the company abruptly pulled its offer in May, as Yahoo, preferring to stay independent, frantically sought alternatives to a Microsoft takeover. "In six months, (Microsoft) will walk away," Murdoch declared, talking to reporters at the annual Allen & Co. media and technology conference in Sun Valley, Idaho.

Throughout the Microhoo saga, News Corp. has held talks with Yahoo as one of its possible alternatives. One scenario would have seen Murdoch unite MySpace with Yahoo in exchange for giving News Corp. an equity stake in the combined company. However, the media giant also held separate talks with Microsoft about jointly taking over Yahoo. None of the talks of the talks ever amounted to anything, and according to Murdoch, further talks are unlikely to bear any fruit, either.

Read the whole story at Reuters »