Yahoo Annual Board Meeting: Mixed Reviews

So, after a tumultuous year, how did the Yahoo annual board meeting go?

Depends on who you ask. If you ask Carl Icahn, he probably thought the day went great -- he didn't attend, and instead spent some time thinking about the money he's making on ImClone, the stock made famous by Martha Stewart. You ask Jerry Yang and he'd probably say it went fine -- since he didn't step down today, as some speculated he might.

Ask the Internet, though, and you get pretty varied response:

From CNET:

"I like Jerry, but I think a new CEO is needed," said Eric Jackson of Ironfire Capital, which controls 3.2 million Yahoo shares, in an interview after the two-hour meeting here wound down. And that's not all--he also wants to see board members Bostock, Eric Hippeau, Arthur Kern, and Ron Burkle step down. And he wants to see Yahoo cut jobs and exit some businesses.

From Reuters:

Yahoo Inc's (YHOO.O) board of directors received strong backing from shareholders at its annual meeting on Friday, with embattled Chief Executive Jerry Yang winning an 85 percent favorable vote.

Read the full story here

Comments

[GerryS]

Yahoo????

I thought that he was one of BUSHCO(tm) newest wunderkinder MBA Secretary of some unknown new departments of something. Like Sec. of CYA, or Sec. of Executive Pardons-

[longnow]

Jerry Yang did wrong when he gave in to the fuked up Chinese govn't.
He did right when he held off Mr Softy and Balmer...b­ut he'll be back.

[oogabooga]

How about if Microsoft and that investor dude just back off and leave Yahoo alone for awhile? Then they concentrate on their business.

[DannyEastVillage]

he is a traitor to his own country - the US - and to his own people - the Chinese. But that's okay. That's business, right, Jerry?

[zull2]

Yang was one of the inventors of this deal. Those shareholders, if given their way, would just tank their stock on some idiot CEO who "did really well" in a different industry. Or someone who started up a successful startup that has no idea how to compete at the top level of the search game, but came "really highly recommended from MS".

And yeah. There are a lot of people still using Yahoo's stuff. Yahoo's integration with mapquest and the fact that it's integrated in a ton of websites out there gets traffic. There are loads of people still using yahoo email addresses because they got them pre-Google­...just like the hotmail people. And because they use that email, they use the search along with it, just like hotmail people use MSN searches all the time. It's good to have competition in the search business, because if there wasn't, you could bet that Google would rest on its laurels just like Microsoft did with IE6 for 6 years until Firefox came out and challenged the heck out of them to make a better product.

[DannyEastVillage]

it's true. I've been weening myself off Yahoo bit by bit--using my gmail account more and more. I hate - freakin' hate - Yahoo and their boy Jerry. And their service SUCKS.

[Tags]

Microsoft doesn't talk about cloud computing in public.

Microsoft wants cloud computing to go away.

[Troubledwawa]

I'm glad to see Jerry Yang smiling, and Yahoo! has a very bright future with Intel and HP, if they can get their vision of cloud computing off of the ground and into service. Right now, their competition is Google and Vmware, and this should be an interesting race.

Should cloud computing work, the only items an Internet user would need would be a keyboard/mouse and a monitor. Everything else with the PC and Laptop essentially goes bye bye, according to the present theory.

If you noticed, Microsoft wasn't mentioned with cloud computing. They've sort of out in the cold right about now since their bid to take Yahoo! failed, and are on their own.

[shengirl]

Yahoo is a joke. I don't know of anyone, ever, who has contacted their tech support or help line for any reason and heard a word back from them. No response. And they keep trying to "improve" things, which only makes things worse.

[DannyEastVillage]

yup.

[snake in the grass]

i thought this story was going to be about william hung of "she bangs"/american idol fame

[Kevbo68]

Well, I still have a job, but I'm not smiling. Guess it's not me.

Does anyone use the Yahoos anymore for searching?

[wagadog]

I'm hoping that Les Blanc does a documentary on it, "Gap-toothed men" as a follow-up to "Gap-toothed women."

I hear Letterman's available.

[sf94127]

I have a big position in GOOGLE so I'm glad they kept this incompetent CEO and BOD.
yahoo will be around a long time but it will fade away like GM. Ditto Mr. Softy. Apple and Google will lead the way.

[AgentMacGyver]

As someone in "a big position," how can you predict Microsoft's downfall? Half the world has never heard of Apple and doesn't connect it with the Ipod brand.

[DannyEastVillage]

I suppose that's true about "half the world." but Apple ain't dead yet and more and more people are fed up with Microsoft. That fight's far from over, iPod or no iPod.

[dadw5boys]

The people who want him out could not do a power point 5 years ago and now think they know the internet game.
If YAHOO was valuable Microsoft would not be back over and over to snap up some of it's parts.

Jerry call PEST CONRTOL have them spray for Scavenagers and Bottom Fedders,

[BeelzebubRules]

I swear, I thought that was William Hung...

[DeSwiss]

I'm always amazed at how so many pundits, scribes and "been-there, done-that's" repeat the mantra that when Wall Street speaks everyone's else is supposed to jump. I like Jerry and his guys because he reminds me of the old days when corporations actually were concerned about "their business," and not somebody else's (*cough Icahn cough*).

It was the guys at Yahoo who created the company vision, and if they hadn't, there would never have been a Yahoo to argue about. The Wall Street money guys create nothing but wealth for themselves that's supposed to trickle down to us little guys (great how that's working out!).

Look, making money is fine Wall Streeters. But in the end, somebody's got to make SOMETHING!!!! You know, something like an ACTUAL PRODUCT OR SERVICE!!!!

And besides, you guys aren't doing well enough these days to go ordering people around and telling them that THEY need to step-down. No, YOU step off!!!

[DannyEastVillage]

you like Jerry for--what? because he turned in that Chinese journalist who's now serving 10 years? Yah--what a likeable guy.