Yahoo!'s recently announced deal to stream the premiere of Showtime's "Fat Actress" impressed financial advisor Merrill Lynch, which released a report last week that maintained a "buy" rating for the
Sunnyvale, Calif.-based Internet portal company.
The Showtime deal, combined with agreements with "Apprentice" creator Mark Burnett, demonstrate that Yahoo! is serious about adding original
television content to its Web site, wrote Lauren Rich Fine in the report. "We believe this development by Yahoo! continues to expand its original content offerings as anticipated and is likely to be
only the start of more streaming original TV content on Yahoo!," Fine wrote.
The report also noted that Yahoo!'s deals with Hollywood have helped diversify its revenue, so that it's not nearly as
dependent on sponsored search listings as rival Google--which derives nearly all revenue from paid search.
Lloyd Braun, hired by Yahoo! in November, appears to be playing a major role in luring
more entertainment-related content to the site, wrote Fine. "Lloyd Braun is having an impact," states the report. "We believe Yahoo! will be able to leverage its entertainment contacts and existing
content better."