Yahoo: Failures

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Yahoo: Failures Yahoo: Failures Jonathan | Naveen | Durga | Saloni W H A T A M E S S ! “ I just try to ship products that I’m not ashamed of ” – Jeff Bonforte, Senior Vice President, Communication Products, Yahoo. (Dec. 1, 2015, New York Times) What is Yahoo’s business model today? “ Portal for customer’s needs (search engine, Value email, news, weather, etc.) Proposition Creates value for advertisers with a streamlined, simple advertising technology ” Revenue Revenues come from display and search Model advertising (pay-per-click and banner ads) Why is Yahoo failing? 1. Lack of Strategic 2. Poor acquisitions 3. Poor Corporate Focus and deals Governance •No business line focus •Excessive reliance on •Incompetent board Search vs advertising vs acquisitions as pointed out by media vs investments instead of organic activist shareholders growth •No market segment •Excessive CEO changes focus •Poor Acquisition 8 CEOs in the past 10 attempted to serve all Decisions years demographics lack of synergies, integration, and •Didn’t play to win strategic fit + paid too in a winners-take-all much market •Poor Deals Partnerships failed to maximize Yahoo’s interests (eg. Alipay, Mozilla) Timeline: GROWTH (1994 – 2000) Acquires Stock Acquires reaches many Yahoo’s Broadcast all time Raised Acquires other human .com high of $2MM Geocities companies editors $475 in couldn’t venture keep up Yang capital with the and search Filo Went engine created Yahoo public “Spider Bot” search is born engine 1994 1999 1999 1999 2000 1996 2000 1995 Timeline: COMPLACENCY (2000 – 2010) 2005 2007 2008 2008 2004 2001 2009 2002 Yahoo Yahoo co- Microsoft invested Microsoft Stock founder & and Yahoo Yahoo $1Bn in tries to buy closes at CEO Jerry agree to tries to Alibaba Yahoo for an all Yahoo Yahoo Yang steps search buy $44.6Bn time low launches acquires down after partnership Google Yahoo $8.11 its own many 18 months for $3Bn. denied search media Google offer engine companies denied technology the offer Timeline: FAILURE (2011 – 2016) 2013 2014 2014 2015 2012 2012 2016 2012 Levinsohn Acquires States Scott (interim Acquires Tumblr for Acquired Acquired that Thompson Sells half CEO) Polyvore $1.1Bn, Wander Flurry current appointed of its leaves; (online Summly, (social (mobile ad strategy as CEO Alibaba Marissa shopping and diary company) is to following stake for Mayer site) for others website) for focus on dismissal $7.1Bn appointed $230MM $200MM “Search, of Carol as CEO Bartz Mail, Tumbler” The decline of Yahoo % Global Search Market Share (%) Yahoo vs Google 100 80 60 Google 40 20 Yahoo 0 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 “ … the core Yahoo business is actually destroying value. It's possible that Marissa Mayer (Yahoo’s CEO) could increase her stock price by simply announcing that she was shutting down all of Yahoo's websites and laying off all of its employees.” – VOX Technology analysis Recommendations for the future 1. Focus only on 2. Only make 3. Improve key strengths acquisitions that Corporate make strategic Governance sense •Decide on strategic •Have discipline •Make Board fully focus: when pursuing accountable Technology vs acquisitions for CEO media vs Venture appointments Capital •Don’t overpay for •Choose the right acquisitions •Play to win CEO Set goals, motivate who has the people •Ensure integration necessary skills of acquisitions •Move into adjacent •Shareholder markets later •Make sure synergies activism can be achieved serves as a check- through the and-balance against acquisition Board of Directors Thank you! Jonathan | Naveen | Durga | Saloni References Yahoo Financial Report 2015, files.shareholder.com, 2015 Timothy B. Lee ,Yahoo is laying off 1,700 and putting itself up for sale, Vox,February 2, 2016, 5:50 p.m. ET Wkipedia Yahoo, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yahoo! Timeline of Yahoo!, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_Yahoo! Krishna G Palepu and others, HBR case study, Strategy and Governance at Yahoo! Inc , October 31st 2011 Tony Hannidies, 12 Yahoo Services That Will Shut Down by September ,Lazy Tech Guyz, June 29th 2013 Motley fool staff, Google stock: Buy it and hold it for life, fool.com,May 21st 2013 Margarit Reliv, Yahoo logos from 1994 till now, logoblink.com, May 11th 2012 Walter Frisk , The decline of Yahoo in its own words, HBR.org, June 2nd 2016.
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