Yahoo! sees its profits slide

Yahoo! saw its profits slide from £140m in the final quarter of 2007 to a loss of £215m over the past three months, but this was still ahead of expectations.

Many analysts were expecting much worse as Yahoo!'s profits were hit by restructuring efforts and job losses in the face of a tougher economic environment.

Carol Bartz, Yahoo!'s new chief executive last week said: "It is my job to make sure we look at anything that makes sense long term for the company and creates value.

"So yes, everything is on the table. This is not a company that needs to be pulled apart and left for the chickens."

"It is my job to make sure if there is something interesting to look at, we look at it."

Ms Bartz succeeded Yahoo!'s founder Jerry Yang as the firm's new chief executive after shareholders lost confidence in Mr Yang, following his rejection of a £33bn takeover offer from Microsoft just before the credit crunch took hold.

The value of the company has fallen more than £20bn since the offer was rejected last year.

But Ms Bartz reassured investors that she hadn't come to Yahoo! to sell the company. She added: "It is my job to do what is best for our shareholders and our customers.

"I am still working my way through the thought process."

Yahoo! saw its profits fall 35% to £300m for the year, still way behind market leader Google who saw its profit rise to almost £3bn.

The world's number two search engine also gave a cautious outlook for the beginning of 2009.

Yahoo! said its first-quarter revenue would range from £1bn to $1.2bn, a decline from £1.3bn for the same period last year.

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