Yahoo! co-founder Jerry Yang resigns

Co-founder of Yahoo!, Jerry Yang, also resigned from the boards of Yahoo! Japan and Alibaba Group [EPA]

Yahoo! announced that co-founder Jerry Yang has resigned from the board of directors, effective immediately, and all of his other positions with the internet company.

In addition to stepping down from the Yahoo! board, Yang has also resigned from the boards of Yahoo! Japan and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, Yahoo! said in a statement on Tuesday.

In a letter to Roy Bostock, the chairman of the Yahoo! board, Yang said “the time has come for me to pursue other interests outside of Yahoo!”

“As I leave the company I co-founded nearly 17 years ago, I am enthusiastic about the appointment of Scott Thompson as Chief Executive Officer and his ability, along with the entire Yahoo! leadership team, to guide Yahoo! into an exciting and successful future,” Yang added.

Larry Magid, a technology journalist, told Al Jazeera that there is a lot of speculation over the reasons behind Yang’s departure. “It does appear he was unhappy with what’s going on at Yahoo!.”

“It could be that Yahoo! is on the verge of being taken over either by Microsoft or a consortium of investors,” he said, “or it could be that Yang is tired of all the drama.”

“Jerry Yang is a visionary and a pioneer, who has contributed enormously to Yahoo! during his many years of service,” Bostock said. “And while I and the entire board respect his decision, we will miss his remarkable perspective, vision and wise counsel.”

Yang co-founded Yahoo! in 1995 with David Filo.

Although a popular figure among Yahoo employees, Yang had alienated the company’s shareholders by turning down a $47.5 billion takeover offer from Microsoft in 2008.