Yahoo announced this morning that it amended its bylaws to extend the deadline to nominate candidates for its board of directors. The move gives Microsoft more time to select a slate of candidates favorable to its acquisition bid -- a strategy the company is widely thought to be pursuing. It also removes some of the pressure on Yahoo to come to the bargaining table as early as this weekend, as some observers have speculated.

The deadline, according to this news release, was extended from March 14 to "10 days following the public announcement of the date for Yahoo!'s 2008 annual meeting of stockholders. As the Company has not yet announced the date of this year's annual meeting, the amendment will give stockholders who want to nominate one or more directors, including Microsoft Corporation, more time to do so. The amendment does not preclude any party from nominating one or more directors at any time prior to the new deadline."

Meanwhile, another round of "white knight" talks are making headlines. This morning, The Wall Street Journal, quoting unidentified sources, reported that Yahoo is stepping up talks with Time Warner as an alternative to Microsoft's bid, worth $41.2 billion at yesterday's closing price. (Microsoft shares opened higher this morning.) Reports suggest Time Warner's Internet unit, AOL, would be folded into Yahoo, and the parent company would take a large financial stake in Yahoo.