VZ Verizon Communications Inc

By Ryan Knutson 

Verizon Communications Inc. is unsure whether it will proceed with its $4.8 billion acquisition of Yahoo Inc., a top Verizon executive said Thursday.

Speaking at an investor conference in Las Vegas, Verizon Executive Vice President Marni Walden said the carrier continues to study the impact of a data breach at Yahoo that affected more than 1 billion accounts, which the internet firm disclosed in December. The hack occurred in 2013 and is separate from a 2014 breach that exposed 500 million Yahoo accounts.

When asked whether the telecom giant would proceed with the deal, Ms. Walden said: "Unfortunately, I can't sit here today and say with confidence one way or the other because we still don't know."

There is still logic to acquiring Yahoo, said Ms. Walden, who oversees Verizon's digital services and has been closely involved in the transaction. The idea is to expand Verizon's audience so it has more advertising inventory. "The merits of that transaction still make sense, " she said.

To walk away, Verizon likely will have to show the overall value of Yahoo has declined as a result of the two hacking disclosures. It will take weeks before Verizon makes a decision, Ms. Walden said.

"I have to have certain facts in order to be able to make a decision," she said. "There's a lot of stuff we don't know."

Write to Ryan Knutson at ryan.knutson@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 05, 2017 12:30 ET (17:30 GMT)

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