Baidu terminated its acquisition of YY Live, and Huanju Group responded that it was seeking legal advice
On the evening of January 1, 2024, Baidu Group issued an announcement announcing that its affiliate Moon SPV Limited had terminated the share purchase agreement with Huanju Group. According to the agreement, Baidu originally planned to acquire Huanju Group’s domestic video entertainment live broadcast business in China for US$3.6 billion. However, the deal has been canceled due to certain closing preconditions not being met by the final deadline.
2 January 2024
Huanju Group subsequently issued an announcement confirming receipt of a notice from Baidu affiliates regarding the termination of the share purchase agreement. The company said it was seeking legal advice and would evaluate all available options to deal with the situation.
The termination of the deal marks the end of more than a year of negotiations between Baidu and Huanju Group. Previously, the two parties had communicated and revised the acquisition for many times, but ultimately failed to reach an agreement. Baidu stated in the announcement that Moon SPV Limited will negotiate with Huanju Group on matters after the termination of the equity acquisition agreement and explore reasonable solutions.
Regarding the failure of this transaction, some analysts believe that this is a normal result after the expiration of the agreement between the two parties and is not unexpected. They noted that although the deal failed to close, Baidu and Huanju Group may continue to look for other cooperation opportunities in the future.
The news also sparked widespread discussion on social media. Some users expressed support for Baidu's decision and predicted that the live broadcast platform market will face consolidation, while others questioned Baidu's investment strategy, believing that its performance in acquisitions and investments is inferior to competitors such as Tencent and Alibaba.
Here are some comments from social media users:
- "I personally think Baidu's behavior is right, and I boldly predict that there will be fewer and fewer live broadcast platforms this year. Everyone understands..."
- "YY live broadcast, what else?"
- "Baidu Yingming YY Live Broadcast always thinks of Waiwai Live Broadcast. It seems that it occasionally plays a marginal role. However, it seems that there are not many live broadcast platforms that do not play a marginal role. Hurry up. Without policy protection, who are you?"
- "Baidu Maimaimai doesn't seem to have a successful business. Why is it so different from Tencent Alibaba Investment?"
- "Baidu has always done this. Back then, it bought Wandoujia for more than one billion. Within two years, the market went cold."
- "I feel that YY is not worth the price. Now Baidu has plans to enter the live broadcast field. Is it an afterthought?"
These comments reflect the public's different views on the termination of Baidu's transaction and concerns about the future development of the live broadcast platform market.
In summary, the termination of the share purchase agreement between Baidu and Huanju Group was the result of the parties' failure to meet all delivery conditions after a long period of negotiation and waiting. Although the deal did not close, the two companies may continue to explore other cooperation opportunities in the future. At the same time, this incident also triggered discussions on social media about the future development of the live broadcast platform market and Baidu’s investment strategy.