Ebay has announced plans to spin off Skype, its online phone unit, with an IPO next year following the collapse of talks that would have sold Skype back to its founders. The plan amounts to an admission by John Donahoe, Ebay’s chief executive, that Skype was ill-suited in Ebay’s portfolio. The Ebay board is understood to be divided by moves by Skype founders Niklas Zennstrom and Janus Friis to buy the company back from Ebay with the backing of buyout firms.

This entry was posted by Gwen Robinson on Wednesday, April 15th, 2009 at 3:39 and is filed under Capital markets, Private equity. Tagged with ebay, Skype. Edit this entry.