• by Mark Walsh  @markfwal, March 1, 2010

With Google and Apple battling for ascendancy of the mobile landscape, Facebook recently surpassing 100 million mobile users and Microsoft plotting a comeback with Windows Phone 7, Yahoo has been conspicuously quiet on the mobile front. Yahoo CEO Carol Bartz has identified mobile as a key area of focus for the company, and in January said Yahoo had signed one of its largest mobile ad buys to date with a major automaker.

To learn more about Yahoo's mobile strategy and initiatives, Online Media Daily posed some questions to David Katz, vice president, Yahoo Mobile North America. Previously, Katz was vice president of corporate strategy and head of strategy for Yahoo Mobile. Before joining Yahoo, he was a consultant in McKinsey & Company's technology, telecom and media practice.

OMD: In Morgan Stanley's Mobile Internet Report, Yahoo is categorized among companies "unclearly" positioned for the mobile Internet. What's your response to the report's assessment of Yahoo in relation to the mobile Web?

Katz: Yahoo has one of the largest mobile audiences in the U.S. -- more than 37 million unique users per month according to comScore/m:metrics -- and millions more users globally. Our U.S. audience puts us just behind Google and far ahead of all other competitors. Our position is strong and we're working to grow our audience and build on our momentum.

Yahoo's mobile strategy is straightforward -- deliver engaging, useful and relevant Yahoo experiences to our users on the mobile devices across multiple platforms. We make key experiences available for both high-end devices like iPhone, BlackBerry and Android and more basic devices.

Over the last two years, consumer usage of our mobile home page has tripled. We also launched a range of apps for iPhone and BlackBerry including Y! Messenger, Fantasy Football, Finance and Flickr, and drove a meaningful amount of Yahoo's overall traffic across PC and mobile. This year we will be adding apps on Android too.

Google's strategy with Android is interesting, but I don't think every player in mobile needs to have their own platform. I'd rather we spend our time building compelling products our users love to use; products that work regardless of the device or operator you have.

OMD: The report predicts mobile Web traffic will overtake that on the desktop by in the next five years. What proportion of Yahoo's traffic comes from mobile -- in the U.S. as well as internationally?

Katz: With more than four billion mobile phone users and a billion on PCs globally, it's easy to see how mobile Web traffic could overtake the desktop in the near future. Outside of the U.S., this is already apparent in markets like Indonesia, where we see three times more searches on mobile than we do on the PC. In many emerging markets, mobile is the primary -- and in some cases, the only -- source for Internet access. You'll see Yahoo introducing innovative products geared specifically to those markets in the very near future.

In the U.S. and other more established markets, we see complementary usage between mobile and PC, which ultimately leads to the user being more engaged with Yahoo across both mobile and PC. For instance, with the Yahoo Fantasy Football app for iPhone and BlackBerry, many users would spend time during the week adjusting rosters and checking updates with PC traffic peaking on Saturdays.

Additionally, our research tells us that in any given month, Yahoo Mail users who check their email on both the PC and mobile are more engaged overall -- spending an average of 82% more time with us on the PC than those who only check Yahoo Mail on the PC.

OMD: With Google's acquiring AdMob and Apple buying Quattro Wireless, there's been speculation that Yahoo may be interested in making a move for one of the remaining independent mobile ad networks. Is that a possibility?

Katz: I can't comment on rumor or speculation, but we're well positioned in the mobile advertising market and provide our advertising partners with some of the highest-quality inventory available and a highly-engaged user base. We have built strong mobile capabilities into our core advertising platforms and continue to build and monetize our own audience.

OMD: Are there any other areas of the mobile technology landscape where Yahoo might look to strengthen its assets via acquisition? Location- based services, for example?

Katz: We are always looking at innovative ways to extend our leadership and deliver new products and services to consumers and advertisers. Carol Bartz recently characterized 2010 to be about investments and acquisitions and that make Yahoo stronger across the company. We'll focus on investments that enable important technology, content, and/or new geographies to help us grow.

OMD: To date, Google is estimated to have roughly the same two-thirds share of search queries on mobile that it does on the desktop. Is Yahoo content with maintaining a similar share of search in mobile as on the PC?

Katz: We are growing our search business across mobile and PC, and looking to drive query volume. When you look at mobile search globally -- especially emerging markets -- Yahoo is a dominant player and we will aggressively look to grow that share through partnerships with leading OEMs and carriers, and by making the mobile search experience easier to discover and by introducing new input methods.

Mobile enables a wonderful playground where we can quickly test and innovate new ideas that take advantage of the unique attributes of mobile devices.

OMD: What percentage of major brand campaigns on Yahoo has a mobile component and what proportion is typically earmarked for mobile?

Katz: Most RFPs we see from major brands now incorporate mobile as a part of their overall ad buy. Across the Yahoo network, we are seeing many more cross-platform buys that extend a brand's reach beyond the PC to mobile. Most recently, Samsung and Visa made buys across our PC and mobile Winter Olympics experiences.

Last year, Subway and Toyota bought ad inventory for Yahoo Fantasy Football on the PC, mobile Web and the iPhone app. Brands are integrating mobile as a part of their overall marketing campaigns to maximize their exposure, providing a new way to reach a large and engaged consumer audience with the right message in the right place, at the right time.