Yahoo Regrets Buying Tumblr

[naveedchick]

Yahoo Once Considered Buying Netflix - but Unfortunately Acquired Tumblr Instead, Ex-CEO Says https://t.co/zKAb1dXbMh
- Variety (@Variety) May 6, 2023
• Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer bought Tumblr for $1.1 billion in 2013

Comments

[my_moloko]

I have to wonder how this acquisition would have worked out if they hadn’t tried to ban adult content.

[januarysix]

I think they had to ban adult content because of that law. ironically I read about it on a tumblr post FOSTA-SESTA.

[my_moloko]

What law?

[booksforlunch]

What I remember is that the Tumblr App was removed from the ios Appstore because it triggered child porn filters. Hence the site rather banning porn outright instead of trying to moderate the absolutely enormous amount of smut.

[myrasis]

what a coinkydink, i regret yahoo buying tumblr too!

[sandstorm]

They're still trying to monetize the userbase; Like look at Tumblr Live or whatever - the main demographic is about jokes and fucking around, not smoky eye smoozing at the camera. We have to tell people how it works because it's so much different than TikTok where you have to monetize yourself.

also is this the first time anyone is hearing about Yahoo Screen?

[lovepollution]

Leaning into Tumblr culture and launching Blaze is the smartest thing they’ve done. I mean, the ultimate Tumblr users goal is to force their posts on as many people as possible lol.

[mad_devilry]

That plus the check marks and the merch. Sure, it's 10 year old joke references but hey 🤷

They've also been doing a better job with getting franchises and celebs to so their version of an AMA and actually promoting it.

[artsyfartsy01]

I feel like they finally took the advice from the Tumblr community to heart after like, 10 years, and realized that they could make money if they let us be really, really annoying
natural habitat and all

[pi_lady]

I still don't understand how they justified paying over a billion for a site that had no history with ad supported products.

[emptyobsidian]

I have to think that the size of the userbase/certain artists and shows basically helping launch off of tumblr influenced them, but yeah, I don't think anyone in that deal quite understood Tumblr or its userbase or its "charm."

[metatarsus]

I mean, the sheer fact they considered Tumblr to be "social media" shows they didn't really understand it at all. It never operated in that way. A lot of the time people didn't want their posts to go viral, it was all about being anonymously weird and cringe.