Yahoo! revamp goes live in UK
Yahoo! has signed content deals with Time Out, Elle and the Financial Times ahead of the UK launch of its overhauled homepage.
The new homepage follows an “open social” approach and allows users to access other branded content in pop-up windows within the Yahoo frame.
The move means Yahoo! can provide access to rival destination sites without losing traffic and advertisers revenue.
The UK magazine and newspaper brands will sit alongside social networking brands Facebook and Twitter, as well as rival email service Google’s gmail as options in the”my favourites” section.
The internet brand is also launching UK versions of its social bookmarking application Yahoo Buzz and a redesigned Yahoo Mail today (23 July).
Yahoo! describes the revamped site as a “major milestone in the Yahoo! open strategy which seeks to marry the Yahoo! experience – the best in mail, news, search and mobile – with the best online content and services”.
It hopes the new page will drive traffic in the UK and increase the amount of time users spend on the homepage. “We are aiming to drive uptake across all UK demographics. We’re aware that there are people that used to use Yahoo in the UK that now go to other sites, but we aim to appeal to all as the page is so easy to use and customise,” says Rich Riley, senior vice president Europe.
The much-anticipated redesign was unveiled in the US on Tuesday (21 July).
The launch was brought forward by two months as new CEO Carol Bartz tries to reposition the brand to grow market share against the likes of Google and Facebook.
