Yahoo announces Yang replacement

Yahoo has appointed former Autodesk chief Carol Bartz to succeed Jerry Yang as the internet company's chief executive officer.

The appointment ends almost two months' speculation on who would get the top job at Yahoo to help the company recover from huge losses in value.

Yang stepped down as CEO in November 2008 to take a back seat role on the board in the face of shareholder criticism for rejecting a Microsoft buyout offer.

Yahoo has suffered a $30m loss in value since Yang rejected the offer at $33 a share, or $47.5bn, in February 2008.

The announcement of the appointment did not immediately boost share prices, indicating that investors may be waiting to hear what Bartz plans to do to revive the business.

Another key indicator to investors will be whether or not Bartz is able to clinch a deal with Microsoft for Yahoo's search business.

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has indicated in recent months that although a full buyout deal is unlikely, he would still be willing to discuss a search deal.

Ballmer is seeking ways to bolster Microsoft's position against its main search rival, Google.