JERRY YANG :

CATALYST OF YAHOOS FAILURE

By: Nadia Davis and Jessica Moore

 Who is Jerry Yang?

Founder of Yahoo!
Born in Taiwan, Raised in the United States
CEO of Yahoo! From June 2007-January 2009
Ousted from Yahoos the board of directors and
severed all ties with Yahoo! (Jan 2012)
 Driven By Numbers..

Purchase of Revenue Loop

Banner Ads

Sales based on traffic versus content

 ..But Lacking Vision

Failure to break into Europe

Rise of Google

Missing opportunity to acquire FB (and

subsequently being overpowered by it)
 Social Standing

Chinese Government Internet Censorship

Shi Tao, Chinese Journalist

* Yahoo! Releases private email content (of inflammatory

human-rights related nature) to the Chinese Government

Comply or Leave
 Public Opinion

Public Disapproval of Yahoo!s Stand on Anonymity

Lawsuit filed by Human Rights Activists for Shi Tao
US Congress becomes concerned with Yahoo!
Jerry Yang and Yahoo! Executives testify
 Public Image

Jerry Yang lies during 2006 testimony

- Yang does not say he will deny any government
information of users if requested
Board of Directors/Investors begin questioning

Yangs ability to run Yahoo!

Google In China
Establishes Presence in early 2000s
Complied with Governments demand to block access to
certain sites and information on the web in the beginning.
2006 : Doing more good than evil by staying
Disclaimers added Chat, email, other features not offered in
China to avoid conflict
 Google Leaves China
Chinese Hackers breaking into Chinese Human Rights activists
account stem from Government
Affects more than 20 large companies
Giving up on $250-$600 Million in Revenue from China,
Google decides to exist the region.
US public opinion of Google increases
 The Microsoft Deal
Microsoft offers to buy Yahoo! for $31 a share
o Yang Declines
2008 share price drops to $14 a share
o Yang vows to raise stock
Microsoft Counter offers $33 per share
o Yang Declines again
Business decision pattern: Yahoo! missed opportunity to purchase Facebook
for $700 Million
o Facebook is now worth several billion
 Jerry Yang Resigns
In the wake of a string of failures, public concern and blame, Jerry Yang
was ousted from Yahoo!s board
Instant stock increas 4%
Yahoo! to hire former Google employee Marissa Mayer as new CEO of
Yahoo!
Mayer: approval ratings of 84% on GlassDoor.com
 Yangs Mistakes
Short Term monetary gain over Long Term gain
Actions that went against the values of employees
and customers alike.
Lying to Congress
Declining Microsoft's offer for double the share
value not once, but twice.
Lack of Vision
 Conclusion

Vision is Everything
Public Opinion and Public Image Matter

Listen to your Employees and Customers

Ethics over Monetary Gain

Recognize a good offer

Know when to Stop