Monday, May 7, 2007

Steady Innovation Primes Yahoo! for Growth in India

May 2, 2007

Steady Innovation Primes Yahoo! for Growth in India

Yes, there was other news amid the
OLPC/Intel hullabaloo this week. This week’s nugget comes from India, where Yahoo! has been steadily rolling out new products, services and strategies.

India’s Business Standard newspaper provided details about some of
Yahoo!’s efforts – increased executive staffing, enabling Yahoo! Maps for Indian cities, and city-specific portals featuring localized, user-generated content. Portal users can find photos, videos, maps, podcasts, event information and blogs for 20 Indian cities.

Vital Wave Consulting likes Yahoo!’s relatively quiet approach to these strategic initiatives. Perhaps taking a page from the chronicle of success written by the telecommunications industry, Yahoo! is letting new products and services find traction before making big announcements about them.

The real opportunity for Yahoo! is the potential to radically scale the more successful services throughout India. There are currently 25 million Internet users in India, and usage is increasing most dramatically in urban centers. The number of Indian cities with million-plus populations grew from 23 to 35 between 1991 and 2001. By now, there are more than 40 Indian cities with a combined population of 500 million – all potential customers for Yahoo!’s new services.

Also in the news this week

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