(NewsVisual, powered by IntellectSpace) -- In its test of wills against Steve Ballmer and Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:MSFT), the Board of Directors of Yahoo! Inc (NASDAQ:YHOO) received critical support from one of its largest shareholders yesterday, the investment-firm Legg Mason Inc (NYSE:LM), which stated that Microsoft should increase its bid price.
"Views of big shareholders like Legg Mason could play a significant role in how the situation plays out," The Wall Street Journal reported in an article on Wednesday.
Yahoo's Directors could feel strengthened in their position as a result of Legg Mason's support, and that support could make it more difficult for Microsoft to wage a proxy fight against Yahoo.
Nevertheless, Yahoo's Directors must safeguard against the company overplaying its hand against Microsoft.
NewsVisual decided to create an IntellectSpace Knowledge Map in order to illustrate the business connections of Yahoo's Board of Directors as a method for assessing their knowledge of business and for determining whether their rejection of Microsoft's bid reflects the judgment of experienced people.
The Knowledge Map shows that Chairman Roy Bostock also serves on the board of Morgan Stanley and is also the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Northwest Airlines Corp.
The following Yahoo Directors also have strong board room experience:
Director Eirc Hippeau is also a Director for Starwood Hotels and Resorts Inc; Director Robert Kotick is also the CEO/Chairman of Activision Inc; CEO/Co-Founder Jerry Yang also sits on the board of Cisco Systems Inc and Alibaba Inc; and Director Edward Kozel also serves on the board of Network Appliance Inc.