- Startups - News Roundtable with Adeo Ressi and Rafe Needleman-TWiST #324

TL;DR

Yahoo makes content a focus with the acquisition of Snippet, shutting down the service to incorporate its features into the Yahoo platform.

Transcript

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Key Insights

• 🛄 Yahoo aims to become a destination for personalized content by acquiring Snippet and incorporating its features into the Yahoo platform.
• 🙈 Marissa Mayer's focus on content is seen as a strategic move to leverage Yahoo's existing platform and user base.
• 🐕‍🦺 Shutting down Snippet signals Yahoo's intention to integrate the service rather than continue it as a standalone product.
• 🚦 Yahoo can benefit from acquiring talent and developing original voices in different verticals to enhance their content offerings.

Questions & Answers

Q: What is Snippet and why did Yahoo acquire it?

Snippet is a service for clipping, sharing, and organizing articles. Yahoo acquired it to enhance its content platform and become a destination for personalized content.

Q: Is Yahoo planning to focus on original content or aggregation?

Marissa Mayer's vision is to make Yahoo a destination for personalized content that combines both original and curated content.

Q: Will Yahoo succeed with its content strategy?

Executing a content strategy is challenging, and many companies have failed in the past. However, with Marissa Mayer's methodical approach and Yahoo's large platform, they have the potential to succeed.

Q: Should Yahoo focus on its own brand or develop other brands powered by Yahoo?

The current strategy of incorporating Yahoo into various verticals, such as finance and autos, is working well. Developing other brands powered by Yahoo could enhance their reach and target specific audiences.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Yahoo acquires Snippet, a service for clipping, sharing, and organizing articles, known as the "Pinterest for articles."

• Snippet founder, Remy Adeeb, built the service to inform his friends about the Egyptian revolution and sells to Yahoo for a sum in the mid-teens of millions.

• Yahoo shuts down Snippet and users have until February 21st to download their data.