Adgully Exclusive | Yahoo! is more than tech firm: Prem Panicker

The avowed aim of Prem Panicker, who took over as Yahoo! India's managing editor in January 2010, is articulated in his LinkedIn profile: "To write a story I can be proud of; to create, on the web, a community forum that will serve as template and exemplar both." Adgully spoke to Panicker eight months after he assumed the critical role at Yahoo! to discuss the dynamics of the template he aspires to create. The interaction spawned discursive and rewarding insights into various media. Excerpts from the exclusive interview:

Adgully began by asking Panicker if the challenges presented by the online medium were different from those he had encountered during his engagement with print media. "While the platforms seem different, the broad underlying challenges are pretty much the same across every platform," Panicker said. "I was in Mid Day when there was no clear leader in the afternoon-tabloid space. I was in the Sunday Observer when the Ambanis felt that it was failing, and they wanted someone to come in and revamp it. Later, when I joined Rediff, it was a completely new medium to us and we had to learn about it and launch it. And with India Abroad, we had to address whole new diasporas, a whole new audience... therefore, there was a lot to be learnt."

As for Yahoo!, it is a content company and not many people have noticed that, Panicker said. "So the challenge has pretty much been to implement and introduce its profile, while simultaneously fine-tuning the product with cutting-edge content and editorial operations," he said. "I like going to places where there are opportunities and challenges."

We then put it to Panicker that Rediff and Yahoo! were seen as competitors but that Yahoo!, some analysts believed, was becoming a bit like Rediff. "If you go back two or three years and examine Comscore data, you will notice that Yahoo! has been leading in the content space," he said. "Yahoo! is in a completely different league. So we don't look at how much better we do than the competition. What we look at is the fact that we dominate this space. In terms of news, we are No.1, in terms of entertainment we are No.1, and very close No.2 in finance."

Yahoo! was devising a strategy to ensure that it becomes the top of the line, he said. "A media house needs a personality, a voice, and a brand presence in terms of the words you use," Panicker said. "In the times to come, you will see that our aggregation is getting fine-tuned. We will introduce various news streams of content. So the strategy is to fine-tune what we are already good at, and indeed our leadership position."

So what is the content strategy at Yahoo! at the moment? Material on TV is presented differently from the way it is presented in print, which is marginally different from the way it is packaged for online platforms, Panicker said. "But as far as the online space is concerned I don't see any difference between Yahoo! and any other internet portal," he said. "As for our plans, we will sign up for regional content, in regional languages, and will filter this for our readers and give them the best. Moreover, we will mix the best of content and add value to it. We will have original content in terms of opinion writing." Panicker said Yahoo! intended to get on board three expert journalists to write special pieces.

Further, all three communication streams (video, text, and voice) will be harnessed by Yahoo! to tell a story, Panicker said. "We will use all three options because I can present the story exactly the way it should be presented," he said.

"Besides, we have also started work on providing content to mobile users. Given the platform, we need to provide the right kind of content. On the web, we can offer multiple links and embed pictures, video etc. But mobile as a medium is not too ready to accept these kind of formats just yet." With mobile one is literally on the go, Panicker said. "So the challenge here is to understand what level of content is actually required and how do we encapsulate content," he said. "It is about condensation. You need to give people tight, informative snapshots. And while giving that, you also need to direct them back to your website in case they need more. The content won't be different but the presentation will be. We are planning to provide content you are really interested in, in the quantity you can really consume."

Panicker said the visual span on cell-phone was considerably reduced in comparison to computer or laptops. "So we need to cater primarily to people with the small screen who are interested in content," he said.

Given the intellectual investment required to acquire, package and present e-content, Adgully wondered if it was time to junk the notion that web was not as serious as print. "Absolutely!" said Panicker. "Yahoo! has more unique users than any newspaper or magazine one can think of. Besides, good content will be read anywhere and there are enough readers for them. And the fact that you can constantly keep changing yourself is what is novel about the internet for me."

Panicker then touched upon the sensitive aspect of advertisements. "I think things are gradually changing," he said. "In my early days with web, you sold advertisers banner space and provided them increased interactivity. But now advertisers are coming and saying that they want a long-time presence on our site. They don't want just banners online and they ask us to create something exclusive for them."

Anything else that Panicker wanted changed? "Stop thinking of Yahoo! as only a technology company," he said. "Yahoo is a content company, and it dominates the content space in multiple markets around the world. We have an overall 22.6 million unique users. That means we have more readership than some of the newspapers over a whole month."

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