January 9, 2014

Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer talks business acquisitions at CES

Yahoo continues to prove itself among competitors like Google and Facebook, and much of the credit for this feat can be attributed to the internet company's divisive CEO, Marissa Mayer. Most recently, at International CES — an annual consumer electronics and technology tradeshow that takes place in Las Vegas — Mayer shared some of her plans for the future of Yahoo, which include a strong focus on business acquisitions.

"Mayer is trying to shake things up by sprucing up Yahoo's line-up of applications for smartphones and tablets," states The Associated Press in a January 8 article. "She also is rolling out more advertising tools to make it easier for marketers to connect with the people mostly likely to be interested in their products and services, deploying […] targeting techniques that have proven more effective so far at Google Inc. and Facebook Inc."

According to the source, Mayer's goal is to use business acquisitions — such as a recent deal with internet blogging service Tumblr — to boost revenue, which was relatively lackluster in 2012. Additional acquisitions that have taken place recently include Summly, a mobile news app and Aviate, a tool that simplifies home screens on smartphones. 

Although Yahoo still has a ways to go until it truly catches up with Google and Facebook — technology giants that have clearly established themselves as the two front runners — Mayer seems to know what it takes for the company to maintain its upward momentum. It will be interesting to see which technology acquisition Mayer announces next, as well as the role that these most recent deals play in the company's turnaround.