14 DAY TRIAL // The Sunnyvale super giant Yahoo signed a deal with Bebo, the famous social networking website, to become the exclusive provider of advertisements on the UK and on the Ireland flavors of the page. This is the first move made by Yahoo in the social networking industry even if the company's rivals already made deals with similar technologies. As TechCrunch reports, Google made a partnership with MySpace and Friendster while Facebook attracted the Redmond-company Microsoft. At this time, Yahoo is already the provider of the search engine published on the official page of Bebo so the adverts displayed by its platforms will complete the offering.
"We think this is a groundbreaking move in the online advertising industry in the UK and Ireland. It's a core step for us in building up the largest and most effective advertising network. It's a big deal," Toby Coppel, managing director of Yahoo Europe, said according to Reuters.
On August 21, the same social network website announced an agreement with Microsoft to add interoperability between the webpage and the instant messaging client Windows Live Messenger.
"Social networking is emerging as the new form of self-expression, allowing people to communicate their passions and express their identity to one another. Our agreement with Microsoft Windows Live delivers a powerful, new way to instantly update and keep in touch with friends and serves to make the Bebo user experience even more compelling and interactive," Joanna Shields, President, International at Bebo, said at that time.
As far I can see, this move is an excellent deal especially for Bebo, the service which now receives the support of Yahoo after the Redmond company Microsoft also got involved into the competition. Using the power of two Internet giants, Bebo might become a new force on the social networking market where MySpace and Facebook are described as the favorite players to win the competition.