梅耶爾的雅虎戰(zhàn)略漸趨明朗
????很難責(zé)怪瑪麗莎?梅耶爾的陳詞濫調(diào)和捉摸不定,盡管她已經(jīng)就任雅虎(Yahoo)CEO七個月的時間。在她的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)下,雅虎的郵件和Flickr相冊服務(wù)的改進顯然非常成功 ,而如今她開始關(guān)注包括搜索和移動應(yīng)用在內(nèi)的其他服務(wù)。 ????在上周二的高盛(Goldman Sachs)技術(shù)網(wǎng)絡(luò)大會問答環(huán)節(jié)上,她的大部分發(fā)言都呼應(yīng)了兩周前在公司第四季度財報電話會議上的講話:她主要關(guān)注四大領(lǐng)域——搜索 、顯示廣告、移動業(yè)務(wù)和視頻。唯一的新聞是她表示,雅虎計劃將提供的移動應(yīng)用從現(xiàn)在的60個減少到12至15個。她說,目前冗余的應(yīng)用導(dǎo)致“產(chǎn)品組合凌亂不堪”。一些應(yīng)用將 會進行整合,另一些將仍然保持獨立,其余的則將停止更新。 ????她一再重申移動服務(wù)將占雅虎未來業(yè)務(wù)的很大一部分,卻并未表示已經(jīng)研究出了一套盈利模式,同時坦承其他公司也沒有解決這一問題。她(可能很準(zhǔn)確地)推測,收 入將產(chǎn)生于用戶需求,并根據(jù)這套理論來運營公司。在上個月的財報電話會議上,她表示就目前而言,營收來源尚“不成熟”。不過鑒于雅虎的移動應(yīng)用擁有每月2億的獨立用戶, 收入水平有很大提升空間。她在上周二的會議上猜測,大多數(shù)人會選擇對自己“最有用”的2到4個應(yīng)用。 ????談到其他三大領(lǐng)域時,她的闡述就沒那么精確了。雅虎在搜索和展示廣告兩個領(lǐng)域很大程度上學(xué)習(xí)了谷歌(Google)的做法,今后將會更加“個性化”,不過她并沒有 提出一個詳細(xì)的戰(zhàn)略。盡管梅耶爾表示將主要關(guān)注服務(wù),但內(nèi)容是另一個核心。她說:“總的來說,我們承諾為用戶提供最佳內(nèi)容,這是人們期待在雅虎的首頁、體育版和其他頁 面上看到的東西?!彼€提到了內(nèi)容合作,這更加強調(diào)了她服務(wù)優(yōu)先的理念。不要期待在雅虎看到任何新的原創(chuàng)內(nèi)容。 ????尤其不要期待雅虎在音樂上有什么新的表現(xiàn),盡管不排除合作的可能性。她說:“我們不會去追求音樂服務(wù)。我們尋求創(chuàng)新和差異化的角度,因此我認(rèn)為雅虎在這個領(lǐng) 域并沒有太多機遇。” ????她的演示中很大一部分內(nèi)容是關(guān)于雅虎(在她就職前)錯失的機會。她不愿涉足音樂領(lǐng)域,也不愿增加新內(nèi)容。她不愿開發(fā)地圖【“因為我從過去(作為一名谷歌高管 )的人生經(jīng)歷中了解到” “那東西有多么燒錢”】。另一方面,人人都認(rèn)為Flickr是一個錯失的良機,但是改良之后,上傳到這項服務(wù)的照片數(shù)量增加了25%。 ????前任管理層錯失的另一個機遇是視頻。但梅耶爾似乎認(rèn)為公司在該領(lǐng)域能夠一展身手——盡管還沒有制定具體細(xì)節(jié)。她說,它“將對我們的戰(zhàn)略計劃至關(guān)重要”。想要 在雅虎力挽狂瀾或許仍是一個奇跡,不過她至少開了個好頭,投資者們似乎也這么認(rèn)為。自從她去年七月接手雅虎以來,公司的股價已經(jīng)上漲了36%。(財富中文網(wǎng)) ????譯者:嚴(yán)匡正 |
????It's hard to blame Marissa Mayer for speaking in platitudes and vagaries, though she's now seven months into her reign as Yahoo's CEO. With apparently successful revamps of both email and the Flickr photo service already under her belt, she's now focused on strategies for other services, including search and mobile apps. ????Much of her Q&A session during the Goldman Sachs (GS) Technology and Internet conference on Tuesday mirrored what she said during the company's fourth-quarter earnings call a couple of weeks ago: Her main areas of focus -- the "big four" -- are search, display ads, mobile, and video. About the only news she made was to say that Yahoo (YHOO) plans to reduce the number of mobile apps it offers down to 12 or 15 from about 60 now. The current, bloated offering makes for "a very scattered product portfolio," she said. Some apps will be merged together, others will continue to stand alone, and whatever remains will be discontinued. ????While she reiterated that mobile will make up a big part of Yahoo's future, she made no pretense that she has the revenue model worked out. But she also noted that no other company has it figured out either. She operates on the (probably accurate) presumption that where users go, revenue will surely follow. For now, she said during the earnings call last month, revenues are "nascent." But with 200 million unique monthly users for Yahoo's mobile apps, there is enormous room for revenue growth. Most people, she guessed on Tuesday, will choose two to four apps "that matter most" to them. ????She was less precise when discussing the other three of her "big four." Search and display ads, where Yahoo trails Google (GOOG) by a considerable margin, will be driven by "personalization," though she didn't outline a detailed strategy. Content is another driver, though Mayer has indicated that her main focus will be on services. "Overall," she said, "we have a commitment to bringing excellent content to users, that's what people have come to expect on the Yahoo homepage, sports, and others." She also mentioned content partnerships, which served to underline her emphasis on services. Don't expect any new original-content plays from the company. ????In particular, don't expect any new forays into music, though partnerships are a possibility. "I don't think we're going to pursue music ourselves," she said. "As we look for the innovative and differentiable angle, I don't think that's an area [where] we see a lot of opportunity." ????Opportunities lost (before she arrived) made up much of her presentation. She won't do music. She won't add much if any new content. She won't do maps ("because I know from my past life" -- as a Google executive -- "how expensive that is"). On the other hand, everybody had written off Flickr as a lost opportunity, but since the revamp, 25% more photos have been uploaded to the service. ????Another opportunity blown by previous regimes is video. Here, though, Mayer seems to think the company has a shot -- though details are scarce. It "is going to be very important to our strategy," she said. It might still take a miracle to turn Yahoo around, but she's at least made a good start, and investors seem to agree. The company's stock has risen by 36% since she took over last July. |