ABC and Yahoo Team Up

Yahoo! has suffered through turmoil the past few weeks after the firing of CEO Carol Bartz. Meanwhile, ABC can use the partnership to delve into deeper content for its readers that network television does not allow. Teaming up will enhance the online presence of both companies.

ABC will use Yahoo’s online footprint to gain authority as the premier news provider on the Yahoo News section. Additionally, original ABC productions will have place on the Yahoo site. ABC currently has plans to add a new segment called “Newsmakers”, which will feature news giants like Barbara Waltars and Diane Sawyer. This, coupled with established productions like Good Morning America will have a place on the Yahoo News website.

Meanwhile, Yahoo will benefit from the deal by tapping into the popularity of ABC News. Featuring the top names in news that ABC has, Yahoo will gain authority as a leading producer of quality online news content.

An estimated 100 million people will receive news from the Yahoo and ABC partnership. According to Ben Sherwood, the president of ABC News, ABC and Yahoo share a common vision. That is, “The future of news and information is up for grabs.”

And the companies plan to grab as much of it as they can. In addition to Yahoo’s large online presence, they also have mobile apps, which makes this more than simply a PC deal for ABC. The news can be carried through mobile and tablet devices, creating an easily expandable market as time goes on.

A conference was held at Time Square Studios. Many big names in ABC News, including Walters, Sawyers, and Katie Couric were present for the conference. The host asked how each felt about the partnership with Yahoo. Each responded favourably of the partnership. Couric believes that delving into deeper stories and providing longer content will be a notable improvement of ABC’s present abilities. Another supporter took it a step further by saying that international news stories will have a greater following online than on network television.

Though having faced a hardship over the past few weeks, Yahoo has kept their head down while plugging away at making the company better and more profitable. According to the Executive Vice President of Yahoo, Ross Levinsohn, the company has experienced some of its best months recently in the Yahoo News, Sports, and OMG sections.

Everything looks favorable for the partnership of each company. Time will tell whether the partnership will be fruitful or not. It has been rumoured that Yahoo will start charging for its content. However, Levinsohn says that the company plans to continue to provide everything for free right now. While the future is unknown, it seems favorable that these two companies will work well as teammates.