Techmeme Ride Home (Bonus) Brian On Acquired Podcast Part 1
9 snips
Dec 24, 2023 
Ben Gilbert, co-founder of Pioneer Square Labs and host of the Acquired Podcast, teams up with David Rosenthal from Madrona Venture Group for a deep dive into Yahoo's game-changing acquisition of Overture. They explore how this pivotal deal reshaped Google's AdWords model and the early days of online advertising. The conversation also addresses Yahoo's strategic missteps compared to Google, the evolution of business models in search, and the complexities in the advertising ecosystem. Their insights shed light on tech's history and implications for the future.
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GoTo.com Launch at TED
- Bill Gross launched GoTo.com, a search engine where results were determined by advertiser bids, at the 1998 TED conference.
- This was controversial, as TED talks were meant to be about world-changing ideas, not product launches.
GoTo.com's Success and Scalability
- GoTo.com's paid search model was immediately successful but lacked scalability as a standalone destination.
- Bill Gross syndicated GoTo's (renamed Overture) ad model to major search portals like Yahoo and AOL.
Overture's Impact on Yahoo
- Overture's model was incredibly successful, especially when the dot-com bubble burst and portals needed revenue.
- Yahoo's profits by 2001 primarily came from its search deal with Overture.
