Marissa Mayer resigns as Verizon closes US$4.48bn Yahoo acquisition

US wireless operator Verizon Communications has completed its US$4.48 billion acquisition of Yahoo's core business on 13 June 2017, according to a statement on its website. At the same time, due to the changes in her role post acquisition, Yahoo's chief executive, Marissa Mayer (pictured), has chosen to resign.Verizon has now combined Yahoo with its AOL business to Oath, a new subsidiary led by AOL CEO, Tim Armstrong. Oath comprises more than 50 media and technology brands including TechCrunch, HuffPost, Tumblr, Engadget and flickr. It commenced operations on 13 June 2017.In an email to employees that Mayer posted on Tumblr, she wrote, "Given the inherent changes to my role, I’ll be leaving the company. However, I want all of you to know that I’m brimming with nostalgia, gratitude, and optimism. It’s been my great honor and privilege to be a part of this team for the last five years."According to the statement on Verizon's website, Armstrong is spearheading attempts to continue building the "industry's most advanced and open advertising technology solutions" with in-house brands such as ONE by AOL and BrightRoll. These initiatives will cover mobile, video, search as well as native and programmatic ads.Marni Walden, Verizon president of Media and Telematics, said the close of this transaction represents a critical step in growing the global scale needed for the digital media company. She added that the range of assets across Verizon and Oath, from VR, AI and 5G to IoT and content partnerships will "create exciting new ways to captivate audiences across the globe".The remainder of Yahoo, not acquired by Verizon, will be renamed Altaba Inc, according to Reuters. Altaba will function as a holding company whose primary assets will be 15.5% stake in Alibaba Group and a 35.5% stake in Yahoo Japan Corp. Yahoo board member Thomas McInerney will become its CEO.According to numerous reports, AOL CEO Armstrong wrote in an internal memo that the combined services of the company "reach over a billion people each month" and that "accomplishing our objectives and goals will require adjustments to the company".He added that "opportunity in front of us is not about the opinions from the pundits and it is not about the competition, it is about our ability to maniacally focus on delivering magical services to mobile enabled consumers".