SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Carl Icahn doesn't let the truth get in the way of a good story. And
while his letters and media interviews may be entertaining, they are not
factually accurate. In fact, Mr. Icahn seems to be deliberately
disseminating claims that are dead wrong. The claims against Mr. Cook
and Mr. Andreessen, in particular, are blatantly false. We challenge Mr.
Icahn to end his own charade with our shareholders. Let's focus on
honest, accurate debate. Here are the facts:
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When divesting Skype, eBay's board explored all options and engaged in
a competitive process with multiple bidders including several
financial and strategic buyers.
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The best available transaction was a sale of a majority stake to a
private equity consortium that included Silver Lake Partners, the
Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Index Ventures and
others. Andreessen Horowitz Ventures had an approximately 3% minority
stake. As the lead equity investor, Silver Lake Partners led the
negotiations for this consortium.
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eBay kept a 30% stake, retaining upside for the company in any
subsequent transaction. eBay board member Marc Andreessen recused
himself from all deliberations on this transaction.
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The transaction and Microsoft's ultimate decision to purchase Skype,
following the settlement of intellectual property litigation, resulted
in a substantial gain for eBay for an asset that had been previously
written down. The transactions were widely hailed as an excellent
result for the company and its shareholders.
Important Additional Information
eBay Inc., its directors and certain of its executive officers are
participants in the solicitation of proxies from stockholders in
connection with eBay's 2014 Annual Meeting of Stockholders. eBay intends
to file a proxy statement and WHITE proxy card with the U.S. Securities
and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") in connection with such solicitation
of proxies from eBay shareholders. EBAY STOCKHOLDERS ARE STRONGLY
ENCOURAGED TO READ ANY SUCH PROXY STATEMENT (INCLUDING ANY AMENDMENTS
AND SUPPLEMENTS) AND ACCOMPANYING WHITE PROXY CARD WHEN THEY BECOME
AVAILABLE AS THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION.
Information regarding the names of eBay's directors and executive
officers and their respective interests in eBay by security holdings or
otherwise is set forth in eBay's proxy statement for the 2013 Annual
Meeting of Stockholders, filed with the SEC on March 18, 2013. To the
extent holdings of such participants in eBay's securities have changed
since the amounts described in the 2013 proxy statement, such changes
have been reflected on Initial Statements of Beneficial Ownership on
Form 3 or Statements of Change in Ownership on Form 4 filed with the
SEC. Additional information can also be found in eBay's Annual Report on
Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2013, filed with the SEC on
January 31, 2014.
These documents, including any proxy statement (and amendments or
supplements thereto) and other documents filed by eBay with the SEC, are
available for no charge at the SEC's website at http://www.sec.gov and
at eBay's investor relations website at http://investors.ebayinc.com.
Copies may also be obtained by contacting eBay Investor Relations by
mail at 2065 Hamilton Avenue, San Jose, California 95125 or by telephone
at 866-696-3229.
About eBay Inc.
eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY) is a global commerce and payments leader,
providing a robust platform where merchants of all sizes can compete and
win. Founded in 1995 in San Jose, Calif., eBay Inc. connects millions of
buyers and sellers and enabled $212 billion of commerce volume in 2013.
We do so through eBay, one of the world's largest online marketplaces,
which allows users to buy and sell in nearly every country on earth;
through PayPal, which enables individuals and businesses to securely,
easily and quickly send and receive digital payments; and through eBay
Enterprise, which enables omnichannel commerce, multichannel retailing
and digital marketing for global enterprises in the U.S. and
internationally. We also reach millions through specialized marketplaces
such as StubHub, the world's largest ticket marketplace, and eBay
classifieds sites, which together have a presence in more than 1,000
cities around the world. For more information about the company and its
global portfolio of online brands, visit www.ebayinc.com.
eBay Inc.
Investor Relations Contact:
Tracey Ford; Tom Hudson
tford@ebay.com;
thhudson@ebay.com
Media
Relations Contact:
Amanda Miller
press@ebay.com
Investor
Information Request: 408-376-7493
Company News: http://www.ebayinc.com/news
Investor
Relations website: http://investors.ebayinc.com
Source: eBay Inc.
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