Yahoo!'s Yang to step down as CEO

Yahoo!, under fierce financial pressure, has begun a search to replace company co-founder Jerry Yang as chief executive, the company said Monday.

Chairman Roy Bostock said in a statement: "Jerry and the board have had an ongoing dialogue about succession timing, and we all agree that now is the right time to make the transition to a new CEO who can take the company to the next level.

"We are deeply grateful to Jerry for his many contributions as CEO over the past 18 months, and we are pleased that he plans to stay actively involved at Yahoo! as a key executive and member of the Board."

Yang will resume his position as chief Yahoo!, the company said, the role he had before taking over in 2007 after former CEO Terry Semel departed.

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After reporting a 64 per cent drop in net income and warning that the advertising market is softening, Yahoo! announced a layoff of at least 1,430 by the end of 2008 in October. The cut follows another in which about 1,000 Yahoo! employees lost their jobs in February.

Online tech conference All Things D's Kara Swisher reported the Yang's move earlier Monday.

Eric Jackson, an activist Yahoo! shareholder who has pressured the company for big changes, said: "I think it's the right move for the company." However, he added, "It's really too little too late. This is a board failure more than it is Jerry's failure. These problems have been around at Yahoo! for well over two years now."

It's unclear at this stage what changes will come with a new CEO but one possibility is another shot at a deal with Microsoft. "I would expect Microsoft to come back within the next three or four months," Jackson said.

In a statement, Yang claimed he had moved the company in a new direction during his recent CEO tenure: "From founding this company to guiding its growth into a trusted global brand that is indispensible to millions of people, I have always sought to do what is best for our franchise.

"When the board asked me to become CEO and lead the transformation of the company, I did so because it was important to re-envision the business for a different era to drive more effective growth. Having set Yahoo! on a new, more open path, the time is right for me to transition the CEO role and our global talent to a new leader. I will continue to focus on global strategy and to do everything I can to help Yahoo! realise its full potential and enhance its leading culture of technology and product excellence and innovation."

Yahoo! said the search will include internal and external candidates. One leading contender no doubt is president Sue Decker, who has been a close Yang ally. The New York Times reported that other candidates include Dan Rosensweig, Yahoo!'s former chief operating officer and now with Quadrangle Group, and former AOL CEO Jon Miller.

CNET News' Elinor Mills and Greg Sandoval contributed to this story.

Original article: Yahoo CEO Yang to step down from CNET News.com