But questions remain about Overture’s prospects. The firm was always a portal-neutral sponsored search engine provider, but now finds itself a wholly owned subsidiary of a company that competes with some of its biggest customers.
Yahoo reported net income for the three months ended September 30 up 125% on the same period a year ago at $65.3 million. Revenue for the same period was up 43% at $356.8 million.
A combination of an increase in revenue from Overture’s sponsored search listing and general marketing and advertising contributed to a 48% increase in Yahoo’s marketing services revenue segment. The segment brought in $245.1 million.
The fee-generating arm, comprising Internet access and personal ads, was up 38% at $79.4 million. The listings segment, driven by the likes of Hotjobs, was up 26% at $32.4 million.
The company also upgraded its expectations for the fourth quarter and full year, although it remains to be seen what kind of revenue Overture will bring in. European ISP partner, T-Online, has already said it does not want to work with a competitor, and that it has the contractual ability to dump Overture.
But attention was mainly on Overture’s relationship with Microsoft Corp’s [MSFT] MSN service, which with Yahoo brought in over two thirds of Overture’s revenue, prior to Yahoo’s acquisition.
MSN is revamping its search offering, and this week told another search partner, LookSmart Ltd [LOOK], that its services were no longer required, causing speculation that Overture may be next on the list as MSN cleans house.
This article was based on material originally published by ComputerWire.
