Yahoo lines up bids for 3,000 patents

Yahoo has started an auction for a portfolio of some 3,000 patents expected to bring in more than $1 billion, people familiar with the matter told Dow Jones Newswires.

The patents date back to Yahoo initial public offering in 1996 and include its original search technology.

Black Stone IP, a boutique investment bank that specializes in patent sales, was hired to run the auction with a mid-June deadline for preliminary bids.

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