IGT chief to step down from Yahoo board
Patti Hart was responsible for an alleged failure to properly vet the academic record of under-fire CEO Scott Thompson when he was originally hired.
International Game Technology (IGT) chief executive Patti Hart has revealed that she will not run for re-election to the board of internet corporation Yahoo.
According to digital news site AllThingsD, Hart missed discrepancies in the academic record of Yahoo CEO Scott Thompson having headed up the search which resulted in his hire in January this year.
Thompson, formerly president of PayPal, is currently under fire in the media and from shareholder Dan Loeb for falsely claiming to have obtained an accounting and computer science degree from Stonehill College in Massachusetts (his degree was solely in accounting) and the Yahoo board announced plans over the weekend to “weigh its options”.
Third Point LLC, a hedge fund founded by Loeb, had demanded “To inspect books and records relating to the hiring of CEO Scott Thompson, the appointment of Patti Hart to the Yahoo! Board, and the selection of Board Members Peter Liguori, John Hayes, Thomas McInerney, Maynard Webb, Jr., and Fred Amoroso.”
AllThingsD suggests that Hart’s resignation is intended to allow her more time to focus on business related to IGT, with the gaming machines and software developer in the process of integrating its newly acquired poker and social arms.
The company acquired online poker network Entraction (since renamed IGT Poker) for approximately £70m, while January saw IGT ink an agreement to acquire social games developer Double Down Interactive for up to US$500m. It is one of multiple service providers to have applied for a licence in the Nevada egaming market.