Yahoo Names Google's Marissa Mayer CEO
07/16/2012| 04:45pm US/Eastern
Recommend:
Yahoo Inc. (>> Yahoo! Inc.) on Monday named longtime Google Inc. (>> Google Inc) executive Marissa Mayer to be its next chief executive, as the onetime Internet pioneer tries to reverse its downward course.
Yahoo was being run by interim CEO Ross Levinsohn after the exit earlier this year of Scott Thompson over some misstated credentials.
The 37-year-old Ms. Mayer was a 13-year veteran at Google, most recently serving as vice president of local, maps and location services, where she oversaw product management, engineering design and strategy for the company's geographical products, including Google Maps, Google Earth, Zagat and Street View. She also curated the Google Doodle program, celebrating special events on Google's homepage.
"I am honored and delighted to lead Yahoo, one of the Internet's premier destinations for more than 700 million users," Ms. Mayer said in a statement. "I look forward to working with the company's dedicated employees to bring innovative products, content and personalized experiences to users and advertisers all around the world."
The Sunnyvale, Calif., company is in the midst of a turnaround effort as it seeks to build a healthier advertising business around its still-considerable online audience.
Yahoo has gone through a revolving door of CEOs in recent years. The company last week didn't use the occasion of its annual shareholder meeting to name a permanent chief executive.
Yahoo parted ways with Mr. Thompson in May. The company formally undertook a CEO search, though Mr. Levinsohn, a Yahoo executive since 2010, had been widely expected to be elevated to permanent status.
Mr. Thompson, who had been hired in January, was attempting to seek out new sources of revenue for Yahoo apart from online ads when an error in his official academic record was discovered. Mr. Thompson subsequently stepped aside, and Mr. Levinsohn, who has a long history in the business of online advertising, was named his successor on an interim basis.
Yahoo also is recovering from a bitter proxy battle for control of its board of directors. Dan Loeb's hedge fund, Third Point LLC, a significant Yahoo investor, had fought for more influence on the board and ultimately won three seats in May.
Mr. Loeb and Yahoo's 10 other board nominees were all elected to a one-year term at the shareholder meeting, which was held Thursday in Santa Clara, Calif., near the company's headquarters.
-John Letzing contributed to this article.
Write to Amir Efrati at amir.efrati@wsj.com
Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires
Recommend :
