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I personally think Yahoo is on track. Much like when my buddy Carly left HP, I think the new CEO will find that Mr. Yang has a lot of good ideas running that just need some time.
I don't know. Search is settled for a while with Google, and I have to wonder about their margins on the rest. Even if Y! does everything right, it will still be a horrible year given the economy.
weeks
Well, Ms. Witch, we are very familiar with your reputation as a wise and thoughtful thinker in the world of webmasters. No silly paperwork. But, tell us, what do you propose? Where would you start?
There are plenty of things that can be done to get Yahoo kicked into shape and competing with Google if they wanted... but selling to Microsoft and giving away an Internet Brand isn't really looking to be competitive with Google, but to establish a marketplace with only 2 real choices for the public.
For Yahoo to develop they should look to what they are about... they should look at embracing 1000s of webmasters and making webmasters want to help them compete against Google.
The process of ditching/streamlining their inventory to re-establish their identity and find a clear direction is something that will help them compete. Even in existing (failing) sections they may be failing due to the strategy pursued... and approaching the same marketplace with a different strategy could move loss-making sections into breakeven or profitable states would certainly appeal to shareholders in the short-term.
where do I send my resumé?
701 First Avenue
Sunnyvale, California 94089
BTW: Best of Luck ;-)
[edited by: DilipShaw at 10:19 am (utc) on Nov. 19, 2008]
Mack.
I just ask Yang one question, why can't I participate in the ad schemes they have for publishers? Any company so parochial has to be a loser in the global markets nowadays. I've not checked but I assume that all European website publishers are also excluded. And Russia, and China? If so, is it any suprise that the company is failing? Or have i missed something recently.
As for being a portal, Yahoo also suffer from being totally parochial. Compare the Yahoo UK version of their home page with the BBC news page and it's a joke. The BBC offer England, UK, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales versions. Yahoo? Just UK. Again, I haven't looked but France, Germany, Spain and the rest probably get the same treatment.
There's a whole wide world out there that has overtaken the US and that's where the real money is.
Call YSM and talk to them.
I don't know where you did your research.
Yahoo has an incredibly strong international marketshare. In some places, they're still #1 for search; #1 overall in the Asia-Pacific region, particularly strong in Japan. Yahoo has separate UK [uk.yahoo.com] and Ireland [ie.yahoo.com] divisions. Should they apologize for not being as granular as the BBC? Yet, they do have a separate Yahoo for the province of Québec [qc.yahoo.com]. hmmm...
what's worse: they are a company without a usp. being the biggest portal on the net (by the way: not in most countries actually) is not a usp. being the biggest car manufacturer in the world does not indicate that you are able to stay in the market tomorrow. you got to have at least one key area where you are better (or cheaper in the offline world) than anyone else:
google = search/advertising, microsoft = operating system, yahoo = none.
what's more, they never got international with some of their core products and potential money makers: ysm is still only in english and not available in almost all countries (correct me if i'm wrong but u.s./uk only). it's absolutely ridiculous. international users don't like to be treated like an orphan at all. still waiting for an adsense competitor from yahoo since five(!) years.
email, flickr, search, content are neither unique nor outstanding products or services. in fact, they are replaceable by hundreds of other providers, nothing special and easily copyable like all digitizable things. the world would not really miss yahoo products and services. the sad truth is: yahoo is a redundant company.
Best wishes to Jerry Yang. I do agree with some of the posts - wrong person put in the wrong situation. He has made his fortunes and can easily move on to better things within or outside of Yahoo.
Mister Yang, if you're reading this, come over to my place some time and I'll make you some home-cooked comfort food. no kidding! Just make sure you call ahead of time so I have the ingredients I'll need.
If he was that willing to let go he would have sold when the time was right. He will just keep pushing for more or crash and burn. He should have had underlings handle the deal with him as wingman. It's like putting a house buyer and seller together, just not a good idea because they are to personally involved.
I recently saw a photo of his face. No doubt he is a stern man and difficult to negotiate with.
Won't bend, a stiff reed.
The kind of guy who puts it all on black, and then celebrates when he loses because the pressure is off.
p/g
However, I like yahoo... I personally hope they get it together and come back in force. But it won't be through search or through their front page portal, it will be by reorganising what they've got, and becoming an awesome, vast social site online with lots of things for users to explore, discover and enjoy.
Don’t under why so many people seem to be anti-yahoo. Mr Yang still has the worlds best portal, and a very good chance of it staying that way. The share price is not at a realistic figure of Yahoo’s worth, so I’m sure it will bounce back to something more reasonable.
Its all hyped up, there is actually no reason why Yahoo have to do or change anything but continue doing what their best in the world at - being a portal. I bet Microsoft are laughing at all the #*$! they've caused.
I honestly don't remember the last time I visited Yahoo for anything...
He was only talking about selling up because the fallout from from the Icahn interference, and the DoJ investigation has shut off all other options - without the freedom to manouevure he thought he had, of course the stock tanked in a falling market... Jerry was trying to look 5 years down the line, to a scenario where Yahoo had a collection of things that worked. From that POV, $33 / share was a laughable offer. Stock prices move all the time, and sometimes in a downward direction, sometimes not. GOOG has been a bit volatile too, remember - the 12 month chart shows a price over $700, then a drop to just over $400, then a recovery to nearly $600, then a market led slide to todays ~$250. Neither company has changed all that much in the last 12 months, even at the huge pace of change in this sector.
What Yahoo needs, and Google has, is a senior management team who can concentrate on the longer term stuff (like phones, and strategic deals to boost cashflow, leading to development) and not have to fret about the ticker price every day. Unfortunately, I suspect the board will be obliged to select a CEO who makes Wall St feel good, and who will run the company into the ground, a la Semel. Semel did a superlative job at Warner, in a industry he understood, and was a near unmitigated disaster at Yahoo, in one he never came close to understanding.
Ultimately, there is a good company in Yahoo, fighting to get out. Either the shareholders can keep their sticky mitts to themselves, and let whatever competent management remains attempt to achieve this, or the good company will get out - they'll all go work for someone else
Ultimately, there is a good company in Yahoo, fighting to get out.
