????雅虎公司（Yahoo）曾經是互聯(lián)網行業(yè)的先驅，當年它的名字與其說是一句嘲弄人的俚語，不如說更像是一聲驚嘆。然而，這樣風光快活的日子已經一去不復返了。過去幾年以來，它一直在苦苦掙扎，以求在面臨來自谷歌（Google）和Facebook的強烈競爭時能夠繼續(xù)站穩(wěn)腳跟。如果說雅虎有志重返網絡創(chuàng)新的前沿的話，眼下正是大好時機。

????雅虎有哪些選擇呢？盡管這些選擇都不免有些差強人意，但我們可以概括如下：雅虎可以依舊作為一家獨立的上市公司，繼續(xù)其痛苦不堪的自我拯救之路；它也可以將自己部分或全部出售給私募機構；或者它還可與其它同命相憐的公司合并，寄希望于規(guī)模效應來重振河山。

????上述做法都不大令人滿意。但是，比起另外兩個，其中一個聽起來要好得多：最近雅虎與微軟（Microsoft）和美國在線（AOL）共同成立了一個在線廣告聯(lián)盟，如果雅虎果真與這兩家公司合并，即便其未來不那么輝煌，至少也能以體面的方式，保持穩(wěn)定的贏利。而且，用戶和股東也會對這種做法表示贊同。

????建立聯(lián)盟可謂兩害相權取其輕。前兩項選擇的結局很可能不利于雅虎。多年來，雅虎一直在竭盡全力扭轉經營上的頹勢，但結果充其量也就是勉強生存。過去5年中，公司營業(yè)收入穩(wěn)步下滑，凈收入一直持平。過去3年中，雅虎股票圍繞著15美元上下?lián)u擺，其中大部分價值都投到了亞洲資產中，而美國人對其亞洲資產知之甚少。

????盡管雅虎也許更愿意保留獨立上市公司的身份，但那意味著，它一方面要面對前所未有的激烈競爭，另一方面還要與頭腦日益清醒的股東斗個昏天黑地。谷歌在顯示廣告領域一路高歌猛進，攻城拔寨，而原本在此領域獨占鰲頭的雅虎只撿到剩下的一小塊“蛋糕”。同時，社交媒體廣告在總體在線廣告開支中所占份額也在不斷增長，而這個領域始終是雅虎的軟肋。

????雅虎也有可能被收購，收購者要么是私募機構，要么就是另一家IT公司。許多分析報告認為，私募機構的可能性更大。據(jù)報道，KKR公司、百事通公司（Blackstone）、銀湖公司（Silver Lake）、以及其他一些私募機構都在試探雅虎的虛實，有意收購部分或者全部雅虎資產。

????盡管雅虎眼下被私募機構收入囊中的可能性最大，但那又談何容易。按照多數(shù)杠桿收購競標者的標準，雅虎195億美元的市值可謂龐大。同時，由于與雅虎日本公司和阿里巴巴公司（Alibaba）的關系，雅虎的公司結構可謂十分復雜。私下競標有可能刺激敵對買家采取行動。如果這些私募機構孤注一擲，通過私人投資公開股票（PIPE, private investment in public equity）這種頗具爭議的方式收購雅虎，可能會削弱現(xiàn)有股東的勢力。

????The carefree days of Yahoo -- when the web pioneer's name was more of an exuberant cry rather than a sarcastic remark -- are behind it. For several years, the company has struggled to right itself in the face of tough competition from Google and Facebook. If Yahoo was going to return to the forefront of web innovation, it probably would have happened by now.

????What are its options? Here they are, in a not-so-pleasant nutshell. Yahoo (YHOO) can remain an independent public company, staying on its agonizing path of turning itself around. It can sell part or all of itself to private equity firms. Or it can merge with other firms in similar straits, hoping that economies of scale fix things.

????None of these options is very appealing. But one of them is significantly less unappealing than the others: If Yahoo were to merge with Microsoft (MSFT) and AOL (AOL), two companies it recently forged an online-ad alliance with, Yahoo has a decent shot at a steadily profitable if not exactly glamorous future -- one that could still satisfy both users and shareholders.

????Such a tie-up could be the least bad of the three options. The first two options are likely to lead to unhappy outcomes for Yahoo. Yahoo has tried to turn itself around for years, with results that could be described at best as treading water. Over the past five years, revenue has declined steadily while net income has flatlined. The stock itself has vacillated around the $15 mark for the last three years. A lot of the value is tied up in Asian assets that few Americans know anything about.

????So although Yahoo would prefer to remain an independent public company, it would mean battling increasingly disenchanted shareholders in the face of ever-tougher competition. Google (GOOG) is gaining ground in display ads, leaving Yahoo a smaller piece of the pie it once dominated. Meanwhile, social media ads -- a perennial weak spot for Yahoo -- is eating up a bigger piece of total online-ad spending.

????So Yahoo is likely to be bought out, either by private equity firms or another tech company. Most reports point to private equity firms as the more likely buyers. KKR (KKR), Blackstone (BX), Silver Lake and others are reportedly kicking Yahoo's tires with an eye to buying part or all of the company.

????Although this seems like the most likely scenario for Yahoo right now, it wouldn't be easy. Yahoo's $19.5 billion market cap is large by the standards of most leveraged-buyout candidates. Its structure is complicated by its relationships with Yahoo Japan and Alibaba. A private bid could incite hostile buyers into action. If the private bidders try to buy Yahoo with a PIPE, a controversial move usually reserved for the most desperate companies, it could dilute current shareholders.