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The decision to discontinue these channels is believed to be due to a weak advertising market and a slower than expected uptake in high-speed Internet access.
Yahoo Finance Vision was launched in March 2000 and was presented as the first on-line TV network. According to the company, less than 30 employees will be affected and they will be reassigned within the company. Yahoo Finance Vision is distinct from Yahoo Finance, which is one of the most popular finance sites on the Internet and is not expected to be affected.
Yahoo Radio, which plays radio broadcasts from traditional radio stations over the Internet, will also be shut down. Yahoo Radio has never been financially successful and the company has increasingly emphasised services for corporations such as broadcasting employee or shareholder meetings over the Internet. The company will continue to operate this corporate broadcasting business.
Yahoo invested huge amounts of money in Internet broadcasting, including more than USD5 billion to acquire Broadcast.com Inc., a company that specialised in broadcasting traditional radio stations over the Internet.
The decision to close the channels is seen as part of Yahoo's efforts to refocus its resources on its core strengths.
Yahoo is not abandoning broadband and plans to offer its co-branded high-speed access service with SBC Communications in the US market.
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