TechCrunch has obtained a secret copy of what may be a mockup for the new Yahoo home page. Yesterday, Yahoo’s new CEO Marissa Mayer shared her broad vision for the future of the Internet company with employees.
According to AllThingsD, Mayer didn’t share specific plans for fixing search and email or an “in-process and dramatic home page redesign.” While ATD reporter Kara Swisher seems to have the phones at Yahoo bugged, and perhaps a @yahoo-inc.com email address, she hasn’t been able to get a peek at the redesign. Yahoo has also been cracking down on leaks, but that didn’t stop us.
Click on the image below to open the screenshot in a new window:
Yes, the new home page looks a lot like the home page of Google, Mayer’s former employer. In fact Mayer, who was Google employee number 20, oversaw the famous clean, plain white search home page at Google. We’ve also heard that she was responsible for the longest time with no changes on that home page. So the new Yahoo home page mockup is not that surprising.
Mayer has been borrowing many ideas from her years at Google including a focus on product and data, free food in the cafeteria, and weekly “FYI” meetings like Google’s “TGIF” meetings. She is also approving all company hires, just like the Google co-founders.
Mayer has already removed some ads from the home page according to AllThingsD. But this new ad-free home page design is a surprise and a risk since the Yahoo home page generates substantial ad revenue for the company.
The new home page features links for key areas that Yahoo plans to double-down on, including Search, Mobile, and Social. It also has links to the reported 4 C’s that are part of Mayer’s goals for talent at Yahoo: culture, company goals, calibration, and compensation.
If you are not logged in, Yahoo’s home page first top nav button is “You!”, similar to Google’s “+You.”
Note also that Yahoo is dropping the ® symbol from their logo, which was first reported by TechCrunch earlier this month. But, not the ! symbol.
Hopefully, Mayer also has a good sense of humor. I’ve heard she has a good laugh.
Special thanks to Google Chrome’s developer tools for making this post possible.
