Yahoo! Search Marketing Platform Opens Online Sign-up for New Customers

December 13, 2006; 01:30 AM
BURBANK, Calif. - Yahoo! Inc. (Nasdaq:YHOO), a leading global Internet company, announced that its new search marketing platform, known by its code name, Panama, is now available to advertisers that wish to open a new Yahoo! sponsored search account. U.S. businesses of all sizes can sign up online to begin marketing their products and services through Yahoo!'s easy-to-use, completely redesigned system.

Previously, the system was only open to Yahoo!'s existing search marketing customers that wanted to transition from the old system over to the new platform.

Yahoo!'s new search marketing platform now provides a streamlined, user-friendly sign-up process that allows businesses to create a sponsored search account in five easy steps. Once in, advertisers can quickly create campaigns, determine their desired position, understand their potential share of available clicks, set their budgets, and then see their ads online within minutes. In addition, Yahoo!'s new ad testing and optimization features allow advertisers to easily test their creative options and manage their campaigns to the goals they have for return on investment.

"We've received an overwhelmingly positive response to our new search marketing platform to date, so we are thrilled to open it up to all businesses that want to take advantage of our more intuitive and powerful system," said Steve Mitgang, senior vice president, Yahoo! advertising products and platforms. "By giving companies the right tools, visibility and environment to create highly effective search marketing campaigns, Yahoo! is connecting businesses to consumers more effectively than ever before."

Yahoo! is currently in the process of migrating its hundreds of thousands of existing search advertising customers in the United States from its current system to the new platform. Many advertisers and agencies using the system have responded favorably to its features. "Yahoo! has long been a key search marketing partner of ours, and based on the performance we've seen so far, we're confident that the new platform will allow us to deliver even more value to our clients," said Stuart Larkins, Vice President Search, Performics, a division of DoubleClick. "Given the ad testing, enhanced forecasting and other benefits the platform offers, we expect to see more businesses advertising on and more budget allocated to Yahoo!"

To facilitate a smooth upgrade experience, Yahoo! is transitioning customers through a phased and deliberate rollout on a market-by-market basis. Advertisers in the U.S. will continue to receive upgrade invitations through the end of the year and into Q1. Those that wish to be scheduled as early as possible can request an early upgrade through the upgrade reservation page: http://advision.webevents.yahoo.com/newsponsoredsearch/invite/.

Following the U.S. migration, Yahoo! will roll the new platform out to additional markets throughout the world.

To sign up online for a new Yahoo! account or learn more about the new search marketing platform, please visit: http://signup.marketingsolutions.yahoo.com

About Yahoo!

Yahoo! Inc. is a leading global internet brand and one of the most trafficked Internet destinations worldwide. Yahoo!'s mission is to connect people to their passions, their communities, and the world's knowledge. Yahoo! is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California.