Search Engines & eCommerce Frank Ross on 10 Apr 2008 03:52 pm
Battling Behemoths
I had always thought of Yahoo! as a major playa in the internet search marketing area. How odd they are fighting for survival right now. Attempting to deflect Microsoft’s takeover, which is becoming increasingly hostile, Yahoo! has taken to a Google partnership for ad serving - on a ‘test’ basis. How ironic that just a few short years ago, the shoe was on the other foot. Google, when Adwords was still in its infancy was serving up Yahoo ads (then known as Overture).
I am no industry analyst, but I see this as weak move on Yahoo’s part. Didn’t Yahoo! just spend a bunch of money and effort on upgrading their own advertising platform? Panama? Hmmm, seems like Yahoo! is chalking up the ‘throw-aways’ lately. Does anyone remember Yahoo 360? How they hyped that up and then just tossed it asunder?
Now there are rumors bubbling about Yahoo! buying AOL. Talk about throw-aways! Is AOL anything other that a relic of a different era with perhaps a mixed brand reputation? These seem like the actions of a desperate company and it’s sad to see Yahoo! in this light. At any rate, it’s an interesting story to watch unfold.