Yahoo

So Yahoo aren't exactly the darling of the online media industry that they used to be. Newer entrants have made a real dent on Yahoo in the UK - the likes of Google, Facebook and even MSN.

Yahoo have a lot of work to do. What does seem refreshing is that they realise his and appear to be trying to address it and in the right way. The frustrating thing about Yahoo as an advertiser has always been the lack of flexibility and dynamism in its advertising models. Their PPC platform was primitive, a legacy of the Overture days. Thankfully this tie is turning with the roll-out of Panama inthe UK. It may just be a new AdCentre that is replicating the Google model, but for established brands and their partners/affiliates, that is exactly what has made Google such a credible media owner.

Panama still has some limitations, which Yahoo are aware of and seem keen to fix. The largets hole at the moment seems to be the ability to track 'assists' without implementing their tags They are keen to underake development however to enable their system to talk to the likes of Atlas and DoubleClick. With that in mind we could start seeing more advertisers use the channel more effectively and understanding the true benefit throughout the buying lifecycle.

Add to the more robust approach to search the genuine thrust to improve content, with the likes of new music channels and EuroSport - here's hoping Yahoo can really make strides in competing with Google. After all, MSN search doesn't seem to have made a dent.