Netizen: Marissa Mayer

Showing posts with label Marissa Mayer. Show all posts

Sunday, November 18, 2012

Yahoo Facebook Search Alliance Would Be Interesting

I think this is the most intriguing move by Marissa Mayer since she took up leadership at Yahoo. But so far this is just a meeting between two powerful women in tech.

I have long advocated Facebook should go into search. And I thought from day one Yahoo outsourcing search to Microsoft was a mistake.

Facebook's Search Option
The Facebook Search Engine
Facebook Could Do Well In Search

This move is audacious. I'd be interested to know what kind of timeline we might be talking about.

But it would be a mistake to think of this in terms of a political alliance. When Yahoo and Microsoft teamed up, two plus two did not equal four. They together lost share to Google.

This is about if you can innovate. I think these two might be able to.

Marissa Mayer: Biographical Details
Marissa Mayer's Gameplan
Marissa Mayer: Photos
Sheryl Sandberg: New Yorker Profile

Yahoo! plots alliance with Facebook in new search deal

Facebook has already said it plans to boost its web search facility, with founder Mark Zuckerberg noting that the social network is “pretty uniquely positioned to answer the questions people have”. ...... Yahoo!, which started life as one the first major search engines but is now dwarfed by rival Google, would benefit from Facebook’s vast army of more than 1bn users. ..... Working with Facebook would also allow Yahoo! to piggyback on the social network’s brand cachet to help it recruit top-tier computer programmers ..... An alliance between Facebook and Yahoo! will pose a major threat to Google and stands to reorder the hierarchy of the world’s biggest technology companies. A senior figure likened Yahoo!’s position to that of a minority party in a hung parliament, with the power to act as kingmaker by choosing another party with which to align itself. ..... she and Ms Sandberg, who is also a former Google executive, are expected to use their combined might to launch a serious competitor. ..... Google dominates the market with around a 66pc share. Bing has had some effect at the edges, with just under 16pc of all searches taking place on the platform.

Monday, November 12, 2012

Yahoo Mail Overhaul In The Offing

Image representing Yahoo! as depicted in Crunc...

Image via CrunchBase

I do have a Yahoo Mail account. It is the one I never shut down. But it is not one I use. I do use it for Craig's List. But other than that.

I think I left after I'd click saying this is spam and emails from that same address would still show up.

'Age of Marissa' to kick in with Yahoo Mail overhaul?

Yahoo is readying "a major overhaul" of Yahoo Mail for December that will sport "a cleaner, 'more Gmail-like' design." .... Gmail saw 287.9 million unique worldwide visitors during the period, edging out Hotmail, which finished with 286.2 million unique visitors. Yahoo -- the once mighty e-mail power -- came in third with 281.7 million. ..... Yahoo, however, holds a comfortable lead in the United States with 76.7 million, compared to second-place Gmail with 69.1 million and third-place Hotmail with 35.5 million.

Along With New Homepage, Yahoo Also Set to Launch a “Gmail-Like” Email Reboot to Slow Gmail Gains

the latest iteration of Yahoo Mail will be released in early December, just after the new homepage is rolled out widely ..... has publicly committed the company to releasing innovative and mobile-focused products as a key differentiator

As Fantasy Football Servers Fumble on Game Day, Yahoo Rolls Out More Homepage Tests Ahead of December Launch

upwards of $350,000 for a prime placement for a day, rising in price depending on complexity. ..... Yahoo was going to veer toward a “mobile first” sensibility. “Yahoo will have to be a predominantly mobile company”

Marissa Mayer Makes Her Move at Yahoo!

At Friday's close of $17.26, the stock is up 20% from its 52-week low. ..... Mayer, who sources tell me is greatly respected in Silicon Valley, has a sort of Obama moment, if you will—in the '08 sense, not the '12 sense. Having taken a rather bad hand, she enjoys tremendous good will in her effort to restore hope to Yahoo! and engender change. ..... As powerful data centers churn out incredible computing power and analyze every single move a Web user makes on every fast new gizmo in their hands, it's time to be aggressive, Ms. Mayer.

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Vimeo, Circa, Instapaper All Look Good

Image via CrunchBase

But she does not have the money for Pinterest. She gave it away.

I am not that sure about Quora. It might be too expensive.

Vimeo would be a must in my book, and Circa would be a great foray into mobile.

I don't think Path is for sale.

Flipboard and Circa are both interesting. News is a major consumption item on mobile, just like on the web.

"Search is a core daily habit for all of us and a fundamental user behavior, the top priority for Yahoo," she said. "We'll focus on reshaping Search, driving smart distribution deals and making organic investments to grow our market share. There's a clear upside potential here, and it's time now to execute against it...... Mayer will likely be courting search start-ups that can beef up Yahoo's algorithmic chops in the ad-tech space."

When Mayer takes on Page on search, sparks will fly.

She has a better chance of competing with Google in the ad space than search. A number two position in search is pretty good too.

I am not familiar with Criteo, but if it is like Google AdWords, that would be swell.

A Roadmap of Yahoo's (Potential) Acquisition Targets

Sunday, October 21, 2012

But Of Course

Analysis: Yahoo CEO's comeback plan homes in on technology, not media

Her hires, acquisition musings, and other early moves hint at an ambitious, technology-driven comeback plan designed to revitalize aging but well-trafficked properties such as Yahoo Mail, Yahoo Finance and Yahoo Sports..... Mayer, 37, wants to make Yahoo's properties much more interactive, on PCs and on mobile devices, using social media tools to personalize the user experience and new technology to boost advertising sales. Her well-known focus on user design is expected to result in a simpler, less-cluttered email and home page .... positions Yahoo squarely against Facebook Inc and Google .... Two types of deals are under consideration: companies that will increase user engagement, including on mobile, and those that will boost advertising returns ..... She's spending almost all her time with the product folks ..... Yahoo's advertising technology products, headed for the auction block before Mayer's arrival, are back in favor. De Castro, her highest-profile hire, is known for a deep-understanding of the complex advertising landscape, where dozens of businesses and technology providers are interlinked. ..... Right Media, an automated exchange that allows marketers to blast ads across a network of websites. ..... Roughly 700 million users visit a Yahoo website every month - putting it in the top ranks globally. But the amount of activity people engage in on many sites is steadily declining, and its smartphone offerings are deemed lackluster. .... "The largest change is to be deadly serious about mobile" ..... Facebook and Google, two companies that have taken consumers' time, engineering talent and market value from Yahoo. They are also trying to make the transition to mobile, but it has been difficult

Her mere appointment told me Yahoo now means to do technology, it will no longer aspire to be some kind of a media property. This writer has taken a few months to come to the same conclusion.