Yahoo ready for take over?

Jerry Yang has given up. He will step down as CEO of Yahoo (although he will keep a 'high position' within Yahoo) making way for his successor. Susan Decker has been mentioned in the rumor mill, and according to official notes, Yahoo is looking inside as well as outside of the company.

What's next? Obviously, with Yang out of the way, nothing should stand in the way of Microsoft to take over Yahoo. My doubt remains; was this the plan of Icahn all the way? Was Icahn always working for Microsoft? Earlier this year, he lead a group of investors trying to replace the board of directors of Yahoo, after a failed take over attempt by Microsoft. Now with Yang out of the way, Microsoft can walk right in. Fact remains, Icahn is a smart man, and he became rich investing at the right time in the right companies and of course he will look after his own interests first.

What is to become of Yahoo after it is taken over by Microsoft? Will it be destroyed, and market share goes to Microsoft Live, meaning that everybody has to convert to hotmail? Future will tell. In the mean time, I'll be checking into gmail....