Yahoo! is to close its last China office in an attempt to cut costs. The company sold its Chinese operations to Alibaba ten years ago, with its Beijing research centre being its last remaining physical presence on the country. The new closure will mean the loss of “around 350 jobs”.
A statement from the company said: “We are constantly making changes to align resources, and to foster better collaboration and innovation across our business.”
An employment agency seized on the news, staging a guerrilla-type campaign which offered staff new jobs. The agency’s stunt took place outside of the centre.
Experts are unsurprised by the move. Yahoo has been reducing its Chinese operations for some time, and stopped offering e-mail to users in the country in 2013. The company has always had a fractious relationship with the government. However, it seems that the decision to close its last Chinese office wasn’t related to the government and was caused by its desire to cut global costs. The company has struggled to compete with Google and gain a strong share of the search market. It has also found it hard to raise money through mobile advertising. It has acquired a number of start-ups in an attempt to reverse its fortunes.
