Katie Couric is reportedly in the final stages of negotiations to get out of her three-year contract with ABC News in order to take up an offer to create news programming for Yahoo. The Hollywood Reporter was first to break the news, but several outlets later confirmed that Couric will likely be the next big name to join Yahoo as the company seeks to boost its web media presence. Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer reportedly personally wooed Couric, who would host her own streaming video interview show on the web portal, according to the Washington Post.
The deal is likely to be formally announced early next week, reports Bloomberg. Couric wants to continue hosting her daytime show Katie, but needs to get out of a three-year contract with the news division that states she can only produce segments exclusively for the network. Leaving her contract at ABC News would still allow Couric to hold on to her weekday show but the network still has not decided whether to renew Katie for a third season. Although the show gets good ratings it has significantly high costs, reports the New York Times.
It seems ABC won’t put up much of a fight. “Katie is an incredible journalist and this was an opportunity that she couldn’t pass up,” an ABC executive tells several outlets, including The Wrap. “Thanks to the powerful association between ABC News and Yahoo we know that Katie will continue to work closely with us and welcome her on our air anytime.”
