DOW JONES NEWSWIRES AT&T Inc. (T) said it would sell its Yellow Pages business to private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management LP and will receive $750 million in cash, a $200 million note and a 47% ownership stake in the new entity. The new company, YP Holdings LLC, will include the Yellow Pages' print directory titles as well as the website YP.com, a local ad network and a mobile application. The sale allows the telecommunications company to focus on its core wireless, IP, cloud- and application-based services, said AT&T Advertising Solutions Chief Executive Jose Gutierrez. The deal is expected to close midyear. AT&T expects the sale to have a minimal effect on 2012 earnings. The Wall Street Journal in March reported AT&T was in talks to sell a majority stake in the Yellow Pages business to Cerberus, citing people familiar with the matter. Private equity firm TPG had also held talks with AT&T about buying the business, the people said. Carriers' yellow pages operations, which provide advertisements and listings for local businesses, have been hit hard by the growth of the Internet as a tool to find businesses. AT&T has sought to create an online presence for the iconic brand, but those efforts have seen mixed results. In January, AT&T took a $2.9 billion charge to reflect the falling value of the business. Shares were down by 16 cents to $30.78 in recent premarket trading. -By Nathalie Tadena, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-3287; nathalie.tadena@dowjones.com
