Marissa Mayer could get $59M payout for failing to save Yahoo

Yahoo may still be painfully losing the war for web ads, mindshare and hot new products, but that won't be a problem for CEO Marissa Mayer. Yahoo's chief executive could get a $59 million payout even if the company is gobbled up by rivals and she ends up sacked, the Guardian reported Tuesday, based on Yahoo's most recent proxy statement.

The same report said that Mayer has already brought home $78 million since she became CEO in 2012, according to stock analyst firm MSCI. The potential addition of $59 million would bring Mayer's total earnings during her tenure at the troubled Internet firm to $137 million.

Yahoo declined to comment.