Yahoo! has been in negotiations throughout 2008 to acquire AOL in a merger. Yahoo! has been deflecting buyout bids from Microsoft, but may purchase AOL in the hopes of raising stock prices. Though negotiations appear to be ongoing some analyst feel the deal is slow to emerge due to the differences in the culture of the two companies.eBrandz: Yahoo Continues Negotiations... (November 24, 2008)

A report in December 2008 from The Wall Street Journal suggests that former AOL CEO Jonathan Miller is considering a Yahoo! buyout himself. According to the reported rumor, Miller is currently talking with private equity and sovereign wealth funds to raise the $28 to $30 billion analysts say he would need to accomplish a buyout of Yahoo! Some analysts argue that raising that amount of funding may be difficult for Miller in today's economic climate.VentureBeat: Miller May Make a Run at Yahoo! (December 2, 2008)