SAN FRANCISCO: A dissident group of Yahoo shareholders has started a campaign to sell its shares as a block, breaking ranks with Yahoo as it faces an unsolicited takeover bid from Microsoft.

Eric Jackson, leader of "Yahoo Plan B," an outspoken group of 100 current and former Yahoo employees who own 2.1 million shares, less than one-fifth of 1 percent of the outstanding shares, said Sunday that his group was prepared to negotiate separately with Microsoft or any other bidder.

"We have no desire to see Yahoo continue independently with the current board and management team in place," Jackson said on his blog site, Breakout Performance. "We believe that is a recipe for a $17 stock price. Therefore, we will band together as a group and agree to sell our Yahoo shares to the highest bidder."

When Microsoft made its unsolicited bid for Yahoo on Jan. 31, it valued the offer at $31 a share, or $44.6 billion. The value has slid along with Microsoft shares to a current level of $41.8 billion, or $29 a share.