Yahoo is like the last of the great dinosaurs. It’s head, once proudly held high over creation, now dragging through the mud and dirt at the end of its ineffectual neck. They’ve been making moves, trying to change their internal structure to grow, but those haven’t seen much result. Their new tactic is buying up properties (like Tumblr for 1.1 Billion) to bolster its failing body, and the latest target in their sights is the video streaming service Hulu. What does this mean for their SEO and social media for business?
First off, we’re learning Yahoo isn’t afraid to spend. We don’t have the exact number, but it’s being reported their opening bid for Hulu is between $600 and $800 million. Other entities are bidding as well, but it seems Yahoo is in the forefront. We know that just two years ago Google offered $4 billion for Hulu, so unless Hulu is going through some unseen struggles or Yahoo is offering other perks, it probably won’t sell for much less than that.
Yahoo already bought Tumblr, and if they get Hulu they’ll be able to start matching up more evenly with Google. Hulu will essentially become their YouTube, where they can offer advertisers video ads, which have traditionally been worth more than other mediums.
If Yahoo is able to get Hulu, it could mean a solid upward trend for the search network going forward. If they’re clever about how they use it, there’s no reason they can’t keep it in the top three video streaming platforms (behind YouTube and Netflix) and maybe even move up a spot.
If Yahoo isn’t able to get Hulu, they could be in trouble. Their deal with the other large video streaming service–daily motion–has stalled, so Hulu is one of their last chances to own an already relevant network. Without Hulu, they’ll have to rely on their flagging search engine and the $1.1 billion dollars worth of teenagers’ blogs they just bought.