Gates predicts Yahoo deal unlikely
Update 10:32 a.m. PDT: Added more comments from Gates in his interview and a late morning trading price for Yahoo.
Gates’ prediction comes as he prepares Friday to wrap up his last day of full-time work at Microsoft. Come Monday, he will serve as non-executive chairman and work part time at the software company he co-founded.
Microsoft’s Bill Gates, in an NBC interview with Tom Brokaw, said a deal with Yahoo is unlikely, according to a CNBC report Friday.
Yahoo shares fell 2.81 percent to $20.77 in late morning trading, as the broader markets also slumped.
During his interview, Gates said “I don’t think that one is likely,” in reference to a Microsoft-Yahoo deal. He added, however, that he believes Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer will find “plenty of other opportunities.”
Shares of Microsoft were essentially flat, trading up 0.43 percent at $27.87 a share in morning trading.
