Yahoos Terry Semel: Call For His Head

Seeking Alpha has a long story outlining Yahoo CEO Terry Semel’s failings since his hiring in 2001, and basically calls for his head on a platter. The bottom line: Google has grown its shareholder value 21 times more efficiently than Yahoo during the time Semel has been at the company. Semel supporters point out the Yahoo did buy Overture, keeping them in the game, but others note that Semel had the opportunity to buy Google instead for $3 billion or so in 2002 (Yahoo also didn’t buy YouTube or MySpace when the opportunity came up). The article also mentions Semel’s total compensation over the last 5 years - $550 million.

Panama is off to a brisk and surprisingly strong start (more on this in an upcoming post). Forgetting Semel for a moment, it may be the single most important factor keeping Yahoo an independent company in the near term. It also might be the product that allows Semel to keep his job, or at least make a graceful exit later this year.

Google- First Result for Yahoo Email Privacy Is Gmail Privacy Policy

Old issue, but possibly new news: Searching on Google for "Yahoo email privacy" returns, as the first result, a link for Gmail's privacy policy. That's silly. The user is obviously looking for Yahoo! email, not Gmail. Bad Google.

A search on Yahoo for "Yahoo email privacy" returns Yahoo results first. A search on Yahoo for "Gmail privacy" or "Google email privacy" returns Gmail results first.

A few months back, Google was taken to task for promoting its own services when users searched for blogs, calendars and other tools.

Yahoo Sued for $20M for Illegal Image Use

An Ohio woman is suing Yahoo for $20 million for allegedly using a photograph of her when advertising Yahoo e-mail services, Google Watch has learned.

According to a complaint filed in Ohio federal court, the woman, Shannon Stovall, learned of the alleged misuse of her likeness after she signed up for Yahoo e-mail. An image of Stovall (left) was included in the sign-up confirmation e-mail sent to Stovall's new Yahoo e-mail address.

Stovall, who is represented by attorneys from three firms—read: not a pro se lawsuit—is alleging Yahoo violated her right to publicity and right to privacy. 

Stovall is seeking $20 million for compensatory and punitive damages and a portion of the profits that have been generated through the use of her likeness, and to cover her legal fees.

Reps from Yahoo were not immediately available for comment. Lawyers for Stovall have not returned calls seeking comment. 

Note: A previous version of this post reported the lawsuit was for $10M. That was incorrect. The lawsuit is for $20M, plus attorney fees.