Yahoo! looks to Asia Pacific markets for growth

Rating: east is east

By Annie Turner

According to a Reuters’ report, Yahoo! expects to announce a series of partnerships with mobile carriers in Asia in coming weeks, as it looks to its mobile services division for growth.

The company has being talking to operators in Taiwan, South Korea, Hong Kong and Malaysia said President Susan Decker said at an event in Taipei.

Yahoo’s combined user base in Taiwan, Hong Kong, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand, five of its key Asia Pacific markets, totals about 25 million users, said Rose Tsou, senior vice president of Asia region.

In June, Yahoo said it had signed six agreements with Asian mobile operators, including LG Telecom in South Korea, Maxis Communications Berhad in Malaysia and Taiwan Mobile.

Ms Decker said Internet users in Asia-Pacific were growing at the fastest compared to other parts of the world, and in 2010, the global market could expect to see 1.8bn users, with Asia-Pacific accounting for 36% of it.

Looks like a series of very positive moves and certainly, Yahoo! desperately needs a boost. However, Yahoo! has a shadow looming over its Chinese operations. Early this month a US Congressional panel summoned senior executives for a hearing after accusing the Internet giant of providing false information over a case in which a journalist was thrown in jail in China for a decade.

In 2005, Shi Tao was convicted of divulging state secrets after he posted a Chinese government order forbidding media organisations from marking the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square uprising on the Internet. Police identified him using information provided by Yahoo!, which has argued it is obliged to comply with the law in countries where it operates. Certain Republican senators were less than impressed – Chris Smith said, "US companies must hold the line and not work hand in glove with the secret police." El Salvador mean anything to anyone?

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