While Google may be picking up the “one-trick pony” tagline – with 98% of revenues coming from search – Yahoo demonstrates why they might have a better model for low-risk growth.
Fool.com reports on a recent acquisition by Yahoo of Stadeon and their plans to grow a newly launched mobile games studio.
Not exactly search, I know, but Yahoo’s diversification helps build that search war-chest.
From Fool.com:
Yahoo!’s purchase was of privately held Stadeon (terms of the deal were not disclosed), which was founded a mere 18 months ago. The founders have deep roots in the gaming business, having worked at Sega and Shockwave.com.
Stadeon focuses on multiplayer gaming, with technology that allows users with different systems to play the same game.
… Yahoo! is actually no slouch in terms of gaming. In fact, the company has the most gaming traffic (12 million U.S. users in January) of any website, including stalwarts like Microsoft and Electronic Arts (. Unfortunately, the difficulty is monetizing the traffic. However, with mobile gaming, users are accustomed to paying for premium content, which is billed automatically.
Clearly, the next Internet frontier is devices. Yahoo! has the resources, brand, and expertise to capitalize on this market. As in the past, Yahoo! has waited long enough for the market to get some traction.
Andy Beal is an internet marketing consultant and considered one of the world’s most respected and interactive search engine marketing experts. Andy has worked with many Fortune 1000 companies such as Motorola, CitiFinancial, Lowes, Alaska Air, DeWALT, NBC and Experian.
You can read his internet marketing blog at Marketing Pilgrim and reach him at andy.beal@gmail.com.
