Verizon and Yahoo agree $350m price cut for acquisition deal

Verizon Communications has secured a $350m discount on its deal to buy Yahoo's core internet business, following the disclosure of two massive data breaches involving the latter's account users.

The initial $4.8bn sale to Verizon was questioned after revelations of millions accounts being hacked, including usernames, passwords and e-mail addresses. The merger will now come at a price of $4.48bn.

Yahoo admitted in December that it was hit by a large cyber attack in 2013 which affected as many as one billion account holders, in addition to another breach in 2014 which saw 500m affected.

Verizon were allegedly unhappy that they were not briefed on the issues before the deal was signed off, with the US Securities and Exchange Commission launching an investigation into whether Yahoo should have informed investors of the breach sooner.

"We continue to be very excited to join forces with Verizon and AOL," said Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer. "This transaction will accelerate Yahoo's operating business especially on mobile, while effectively separating our Asian asset equity stakes. It is an important step to unlock shareholder value for Yahoo, and we can now move forward with confidence and certainty."

The closure of the acquisition was pushed back after an announcement from Yahoo in its fourth quarter earnings report in January, citing "work required to meet closing conditions."

Yahoo and Verizon will both be responible for 50% of any cash liabilities resulting from government investigations into the data breaches. The deal is now expected to close in the second quarter of 2017.

"We have always believed this acquisition makes strategic sense," added Verizon executive vice president Marni Walden. "We look forward to moving ahead expeditiously so that we can quickly welcome Yahoo's tremendous talent and assets into our expanding portfolio in the digital advertising space."