Report: Yahoo In 'Serious' Talks to Buy Tumblr

The tech world is abuzz today over reports that Yahoo is in talks to invest in, partner with, or just plain buy Tumblr, in an attempt to, to quote Yahoo CFO Ken Goldman, make the company "cool again." Goldman uttered those words earlier this week, saying that the company's chief challenge is its aging demographic, and sources tell AllThingsDigital that the Tumblr talks are part of the strategy for changing that. The deal is far from done, but sources say talks are "serious."

The price tag could reach as high as $1 billion, Adweek reports—a figure that matches what Tumblr is reportedly seeking in its next round of financing. But Yahoo isn't the only suitor for the Internet's new it-girl; Facebook and Microsoft are having similar, albeit less serious, conversations with the blogging site, sources tell Jeff Bercovici at Forbes. But Bercovici notes that in a December interview, Tumblr's CEO said he wanted to avoid getting "absorbed into a behemoth of another company and raided for talent and traffic." (More Yahoo stories.)