Unknown Yahoo! owned sites and services
Yahoo! is a major player in the world of internet technology. The company operates many different businesses within the space, from Yahoo! Mail to Yahoo Finance and the infamous Yahoo Answers. It also owns a huge array of other services like Flickr, Tumblr, and even its own TV network.
Despite these massive holdings, it is hard to think of Yahoo! as anything more than just a search engine. In fact, with all these sites and services, it is very difficult to see where the company fits into our everyday lives. So how did this major internet corporation begin its journey and what does it have to offer today?
The beginnings of Yahoo Inc.
In 1997, Jerry Yang and David Filo founded the Yahoo! web portal. They were two Stanford University students who wanted a way for their fellow college kids to easily communicate with one another via email.
They named it after the popular song by Chicago band “Earth, Wind & Fire”, which at the time was the only music video that Yahoo! would host on its site. And so, the Yahoo! domain name was born.
The service quickly became wildly popular among college students who used it to keep up with friends online. Yahoo!’s popularity soon grew past college campuses and the company began expanding to other areas.
Today, Yahoo! is still primarily focused on providing email and content delivery tools for users around the globe. However, over the years the company has expanded beyond those original goals, including the launch of its news feed, sports scores, weather, finance, games, blogs, instant messaging, and more.
Some history of Yahoo!
Yahoo! launched its first website in 1995. It was called Yoyopedia (which eventually changed to Yoyo) and served as the company’s introduction to the public. Then, in 1996, Yahoo! introduced Search Engine Watch, a blog dedicated to tracking and reporting on the latest search trends. It was also at this point that the company officially adopted the “Yahoo!” moniker.
It wasn’t until 1998 that Yahoo! made its first foray into the realm of social media when it introduced My Yahoo!, a Facebook-like platform. In 1999, Yahoo! bought GeoCities for $3 billion, and soon added blogging capabilities to the mix. That same year, the company also acquired Broadcast.com, a streaming media company, for $5 billion.
In 2000, the company finally introduced its first desktop application, Yahoo! Messenger. This was the first chat client available on the internet that let you talk to your friends without requiring them to visit the service. By 2002, Yahoo! had grown into a multi-billion dollar corporation and continued to expand rapidly.
Over the next decade, it would go on to acquire dozens of other companies and brands, including Astrid Networks and Brightmail, as well as the rights to use Ask Jeeves’ trademarked slogan, “Ask a Grown Up.” After a few years of steady growth, Yahoo! would face some setbacks. In 2009, the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, citing losses due to an economic downturn and increased competition. This was the beginning of a long and bumpy road for Yahoo!.
Facts about Yahoo!
Yahoo! currently owns and operates multiple websites and online properties, including:
- Yahoo! Mail – It is a free email service that provides unlimited message storage, e-mail search, contact lists, personalization, and more.
- Yahoo! News – It is an internet-based news aggregator with the latest news and headlines, plus in-depth coverage with videos and photos.
- Yahoo! Sports – It is a sports news website with comprehensive news, scores, standings, fantasy games, and more.
- Yahoo! Finance – It provides free stock quotes, up-to-date news, portfolio management resources, international market data, and more.
- Yahoo! Answers – It is an online forum that allows users to ask questions about virtually any topic and get answers from real experts.
- Yahoo! Music – It offers a variety of digital music downloads, radio stations, and artist profiles.
- Yahoo! Movies – It provides access to free movies, trailers, and interviews.
- Yahoo! Weather – It offers detailed forecasts, hourly updates, satellite images, maps, radar, and local conditions.
- Yahoo! Plus – It is a subscription-based service that gives members access to thousands of free ebooks, magazines, newspapers, music, and games.
- Flickr – It is a platform for sharing photos and videos, mostly used by many photography professionals to send images to clients.
It also maintains a large collection of patents and trademarks related to the internet, including the famous “Do Not Track” feature, which lets users opt out of data mining and targeted advertising on the web.
The company also owns several brands outside of its core business, including Yahoo! Japan, Yahoo! China, Yahoo! Latin America, Yahoo! Philippines, Yahoo! Korea, Yahoo! India, Yahoo! Indonesia, and Yahoo! Germany.
Pros and cons of using Yahoo! email
There are several advantages to using Yahoo! email:
- Yahoo! offers unlimited storage space for all emails.
- The company automatically scans incoming messages for viruses before they’re delivered.
- The service doesn’t charge you for spam filtering.
- Yahoo! offers free mobile apps for Android and iOS devices.
On the flip side, Yahoo! isn’t exactly known for its speed and reliability. Some users complain about slow email delivery times, while others report issues with Yahoo! email accounts being hacked. Also, Yahoo! has been rumored to be considering selling off portions of itself, including Yahoo! Mail.
If you wish to create a Yahoo! account but do not feel quite secure about sharing personal information like your own phone number, you can always use a Non-VoIP number to cover your back.
What are Non-VoIP numbers?
Non-VoIP numbers are telephone numbers that aren’t assigned to a specific person or geographic location. They allow users to verify online accounts without spending too much money and protect their privacy as they are anonymous and not traceable.
Regular phone numbers need phone lines and other kinds of infrastructure to function, while Non-VoIP numbers only need the internet to properly offer an extra layer of anonymity, especially during these times full of tracking and privacy-invasive business tactics.
Conclusion
Yahoo! is no longer just a search engine – it is a complete suite of internet services. With the many products and services, it offers, whether you’re interested in searching the web, chatting with friends, finding cool stuff to do on the internet, or listening to music, there’s always something for everyone.
Whether you’ve already signed up for a Yahoo! account or not, check out these sites and services that Yahoo! owns and runs every day. And if you haven’t yet, why not sign up for an account today?
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