Yahoo!'s $1bn! for! patents!

Yahoo! is auctioning off its portfolio of roughly 3,000 patents and it wants $1bn for them. The news comes as bidding for the company's "core business" comes to a head.

The failing internet company has set a mid-June deadline for initial bids for the patents – most of which cover web search and advertising. The patents have all been placed into a separate subsidiary – Excalibur IP – and that decision may account for the fact that bids for the bulk of the rest of the company have been significantly lower than expected.

Verizon is still thought to be the lead bidder for the company. ®