Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer Resigns as Verizon Officially Acquires the Company

Verizon has finally officially acquired Yahoo, and that means Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer is saying goodbye. Today, the companies announced Verizon has completed its $4.5 billion deal originally announced nearly a year ago, marking the end of an uncertain chapter in the life of the internet legacy company. In a statement announcing the acquisition, Verizon confirmed Mayer's resignation, citing "inherent changes" in her role with Yahoo that resulted from the acquisition. With her exit, Mayer will receive a compensation package valued around $23 million. In a Tumblr post today announcing her resignation, Mayer reflected on her tenure, listing a string of highlights for users, advertisers and publishers. Yahoo will now join Verizon-owned AOL as a part of Oath, a recently created umbrella brand for Yahoo and AOL's publishing and ad-tech properties. "Looking back on my time at Yahoo, we have confronted seemingly insurmountable business challenges, along with many surprise twists and turns," wrote Mayer, who became CEO in 2012. "I’ve seen our teams navigate these hurdles and mountains in ways that have not only made Yahoo a better company, but also made all of us far stronger." Mayer is likely not the only person leaving the combined company. Last week, TechCrunch reported on Verizon's plans to lay off around 15 percent of the total staff at AOL and Yahoo as a result of the acquisition, which amounts to around 2,100 employees. AOL CEO Tim Armstrong confirmed the layoffs, The Wall Street Journal reported today. From 2011 through 2016, Yahoo spent time and resources building out a suite of ad-tech products for the mobile-first, data-driven era. One area of focus has been the company's Mavens business, which consists of mobile, video, native and social products. Last year, Mavens brought in more than $2 billion in revenue, making up around 42 percent of Yahoo's total revenue for 2016. That's up tenfold from 2012, when Mayer joined the company. During Mayer's time as CEO, Yahoo also acquired several ad-tech companies of its own, including the video ad platform BrightRoll in 2014 and the mobile analytics firm Flurry the same year. In a statement today about the acquisition, Armstrong said the company is "building the future of brands using powerful technology, trusted content and differentiated data." "We have dominating consumer brands in news, sports, finance, tech, and entertainment and lifestyle coupled with our market leading advertising-technology platforms," he said. "Now that the deal is closed, we are excited to set our focus on being the best company for consumer media and the best partner to our advertising, content and publisher partners."