Core Insights - Yahoo's advertising business is undergoing significant changes, focusing on its Demand-Side Platform (DSP) to regain relevance in the industry [1][2][5] - The company has made substantial improvements to its DSP, including a complete overhaul of its underlying architecture and user interface, enhancing identity recognition and expanding e-commerce media coverage [1][4][12] Group 1: Business Background - Yahoo's advertising division was acquired by Verizon in 2017 and later rebranded as Verizon Media, attempting a closed-loop platform strategy [3] - In 2021, Apollo Global Management acquired 90% of Verizon Media for $5 billion, renaming it Yahoo and retaining a 10% stake [3] - The company has been in a contraction phase, with significant actions taken in 2022-2023, including a partnership with Taboola and layoffs of approximately 1,600 employees [4] Group 2: Strategic Focus - Yahoo is shifting its strategy to concentrate on DSP, moving away from being both a media and trading platform [5][6] - The goal is to create a standalone asset that can be clearly valued and serve as a growth engine [7][8] Group 3: Product Improvements - Yahoo has streamlined its advertising system to reduce complexity, integrating various functionalities into a single interface [11][12] - The introduction of ConnectID allows for better user identification across platforms, improving ad targeting and budget efficiency [12] Group 4: Competitive Landscape - Amazon remains the dominant player in retail media, with its DSP leveraging extensive shopping data and membership systems [16][17] - Yahoo aims to position itself as a complementary player, integrating signals from various retail media and CTV platforms without competing directly with Amazon [20][21] Group 5: Market Positioning - Yahoo's advertising strategy is to serve as a secondary option for advertisers who seek transparency and wish to diversify their budgets away from major platforms like Amazon [22][23] - The company acknowledges that being a useful alternative in the advertising market is a form of success, even if it does not reclaim its former dominance [24][25]