Yahoo Makes Anti-Icahn Case To Shareholders

June 30, 2008 1:56 p.m. EST

Sunnyvale, CA (AHN) - In a letter to Yahoo shareholders, Yahoo executives said the upcoming board member election is a choice between "nominees with no articulated plan for the future" or a current board with experience needed to deliver on Yahoo's goals.

Billionaire activist investor Carl Icahn expects to nominate his slate of candidates at board member elections during Yahoo's annual company meeting Aug. 1.

Yahoo board chairman Ray Bostock and CEO Jerry Yang also told stockholders Microsoft had proposed a "search-only hybrid" plan to buy the Internet company's search unit for an $8 billion investment. The deal would have forbid Yahoo from doing search deals with anyone else.

The two executives said the ultimate ad agreement with Google was "far better" than the Microsoft offer.