SoftBank pays $1.6 bln for Yahoo Japan rights
SoftBank’s internet business Z Holdings Corp said on Monday it has agreed to pay Verizon Communications Inc 178.5 billion yen ($1.61 billion) to secure the rights to Yahoo branding and technology in perpetuity in Japan.
In contrast to the retreat of Yahoo in the United States, the brand remains a core part of SoftBank’s domestic internet business where the name adorns a web portal and services like shopping and weather.
Verizon is its media businesses including Yahoo and AOL to private equity firm Apollo Globalafter struggling to compete with internet giants in a $5 billion deal set to close in the second half of this year.
Previously known as Yahoo Japan, SoftBank’s internet business rebranded as Z Holdings and is betting on services such as payments app and chat app Line for growth in Japan and Southeast Asia.
