Yahoo! Appoints Scott Thompson Chief Executive Officer
SUNNYVALE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO), the premier digital media company, today
announced the appointment of Scott Thompson as Chief Executive Officer,
effective January 9, 2012, at which time Tim Morse will resume his role
as Chief Financial Officer. Thompson has also been appointed to the
Company's Board of Directors, effective January 9, 2012.
Thompson served most recently as President of PayPal, a division of
eBay, where he continued his established track record of growing
businesses by driving customer engagement built on strong technology
platforms. Under his leadership, PayPal solidified its lead as the
global online payment service, expanding its user base from 50 million
to more than 104 million active users in 190 countries worldwide,
increasing the number of merchant partners to more than 8 million
globally, and growing revenues from $1.8 billion to $4+ billion in 2011.
"Scott brings to Yahoo! a proven record of building on a solid
foundation of existing assets and resources to reignite innovation and
drive growth, precisely the formula we need at Yahoo!," said Roy
Bostock, Chairman of the Yahoo! Board. "His deep understanding of online
businesses combined with his team building and operational capabilities
will restore the energy, focus, and momentum necessary to grow the core
business and deliver increased value for our shareholders. The search
committee and the entire Board concluded that he is the right leader to
return the core business to a path of robust growth and industry-leading
innovation."
"Yahoo! is an industry icon and I am very excited about the prospect of
working with one of the great teams in the online world to deliver
Yahoo!'s next era of success," Mr. Thompson said. "Yahoo! has a rich
history and a solid foundation to build on, and its continued user
engagement is one of the many reasons for my enthusiasm. With the
ultimate goal of delivering the value our shareholders expect, my
immediate focus will be on getting to know the entire team and hearing
more from all Yahoo!s, working closely with the engineers and product
teams, and diving deeply into our products and services to learn more
about what our more than 700 million users find most engaging and
useful. I will also be working directly with our region leaders and
sales teams globally to get a clearer understanding of the needs of our
advertisers and publishers. Clearly, speed is important but we will
attack both the opportunity ahead and the competitive challenges with an
appropriate balance of urgency and thoughtfulness. I cannot wait to get
started."
"Scott's primary focus will be on the core business, and as CEO and
director, he will work closely with the Board as we continue the
strategic review process to identify the best approaches for the Company
and its shareholders. As part of this process, Yahoo! is considering a
wide range of opportunities for the Company's business, as well as
specific investments or dispositions of assets," added Bostock.
"We are all grateful to Tim Morse for leading the company with a steady
hand during the last several months. His deep understanding of the
Company and his positive approach kept the company on course and we will
continue to benefit from his exceptional capabilities as he returns to
his Chief Financial Officer role," Bostock concluded.
Scott Thompson Biographical Information
Scott Thompson has a record of deep industry experience, having most
recently served as President of PayPal with overall responsibility for
establishing that company as the leading global online payment service.
He previously served as PayPal's Senior Vice President and Chief
Technology Officer. Prior to PayPal, Mr. Thompson was Executive Vice
President of technology solutions at Inovant, a subsidiary of Visa
formed to oversee global technology for the organization. Thompson was
also Chief Information Officer of Barclays Global Investors, where he
implemented a new strategic technology platform and global
infrastructure. In addition, he worked with Coopers and Lybrand,
delivering information technology solutions to leading financial
services clients.
Conference Call and Webcast Information
Yahoo! will host a conference call to discuss today's announcement at 10
a.m. Eastern Time today. A live webcast of the conference call can be
accessed through the Company's Investor Relations website at http://investor.yahoo.net/.
The dial-in number for the live conference call is (877) 218-7860.
Participants calling from outside the United States may dial (857)
244-7400. The passcode 60719359# is required to access the call. In
addition, an archive of the webcast can be accessed through the same
link. An audio replay of the call will be available for one week
following the conference call by calling (888) 286-8010 or (617)
801-6888, passcode: 53109628
About Yahoo!
Yahoo! is the premier digital media company, creating deeply personal
digital experiences that keep more than half a billion people connected
to what matters most to them, across devices and around the globe. And
Yahoo!'s unique combination of Science + Art + Scale connects
advertisers to the consumers who build their businesses. Yahoo! is
headquartered in Sunnyvale, California. For more information, visit the
pressroom (pressroom.yahoo.net)
or the company's blog, Yodel Anecdotal (yodel.yahoo.com).
Yahoo! is the trademark and/or registered trademark of Yahoo! Inc. All
other names are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of their
respective owners.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements (including
without limitation the quotations from our Chairman and management)
concerning Yahoo!'s future management, strategic plans, growth
opportunities and performance. Risks and uncertainties may cause actual
results to differ materially from the results predicted. The potential
risks and uncertainties include, among others, the impact of management
and organizational changes; the implementation and results of any
strategic plans as well as Yahoo!'s ongoing strategic and cost
initiatives; Yahoo!'s ability to compete with new or existing
competitors; reduction in spending by, or loss of, advertising
customers; the demand by customers for Yahoo!'s premium services;
interruptions or delays in the provision of Yahoo!'s services; security
breaches; acceptance by users of new products and services; risks
related to joint ventures and the integration of acquisitions; risks
related to Yahoo!'s international operations; failure to manage growth
and diversification; adverse results in litigation, including
intellectual property infringement claims and recent derivative and
class actions related to Alipay; Yahoo!'s ability to protect its
intellectual property and the value of its brands; dependence on key
personnel; dependence on third parties for technology, services,
content, and distribution; general economic conditions and changes in
economic conditions; transition and implementation risks associated with
the Search Agreement with Microsoft Corporation; and risks that the
benefits of the Framework Agreement Yahoo! entered into with Alibaba
Group, Softbank Corporation and certain other parties regarding Alipay
may not be realized. All information set forth in this press release and
its attachments is as of January 4, 2012. Yahoo! does not intend, and
undertakes no duty, to update this information to reflect subsequent
events or circumstances. More information about potential factors that
could affect Yahoo!'s business and financial results is included under
the captions "Risk Factors" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of
Financial Condition and Results of Operations" in Yahoo!'s Annual Report
on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2010, and the
Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2011,
which are on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC")
and available at the SEC's website at www.sec.gov.
Media Relations:
Kekst and Company
Eric Berman,
212-521-4894
Lissa Perlman, 212-521-4830
or
Investor
Relations:
Yahoo!
Marta Nichols, 408-349-3527
Source: Yahoo! Inc.
News Provided by Acquire Media
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