It's been a really rocky year for Yahoo! CEO Jerry Yang. After turning down a $47.5 billion takeover offer from Microsoft six months ago, the company saw its stock value plummet to its lowest levels in five years.

Today, amidst mounting pressure from investors and Yahoo's board, Yang announced that he would step aside as chief executive: Yahoo's Yang decides he's no longer the right CEO.

Yang, who started the company as a Stanford student in 1994, will stay on as CEO until Yahoo finds a suitable replacement. The company is apparently interviewing candidates inside and outside Yahoo.

Sorry, Jerry. For a guy who loves his company this much, this is probably the best course of action. And most people out there seem to agree. But does this mean that we'll soon see Yahoo sold off to Microsoft?