Yahoo! Cuts 400 Jobs Worldwide

Yahoo! is cutting around 400 jobs worldwide as part of a move to restructure the business in the face of the worsening economic climate.

The company’s chief executive, Terry Semel, said that the majority of jobs would be cut from the company’s international and broadcasting divisions but emphasised that expansion in key business areas would mean that the number of actual redundancies would be around 300.

Heavy losses are feared at the company’s largest international subsidiary, Yahoo UK and Ireland. However, an industry source suggested that job cuts in Europe would be significantly lower than in the US.

Yahoo, which currently derives over three-quarters of its revenue from advertising, has been badly hit by the economic slowdown and plans to restructure its business strategy in an attempt to cut down its reliance on ad revenue.

As part of the new strategy the company plans to increase profitability by closing a number non-core business interests and will implement plans to generate an equal amount of income from advertising and business or consumer services by the end of 2004.

Yahoo, which in the past has been accused of being arrogant in its approach to business partnerships, is expected to adopt a more conservative strategy as the advertising downturn continues to take its toll. Yahoo UK and Ireland’s commercial director, Lee Thompson, said: “Although we’re in a challenging environment, we’re really confident about the online future and more so in the strength of our brand.”

Yahoo UK and Ireland: www.yahoo.co.uk

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