Yahoo! Execs Say Adieu
Two of Yahoo!s top international executives are leaving the company. Fabiola Arredondo, managing director at Yahoo! Europe in London, resigned earlier this month. Arredondo, who joined Yahoo! in 1997, will leave to pursue other business interests, according to the company. Meanwhile, Savio Chow, vice president and managing director at Yahoo! Asia, will retire at the end of the month to spend more time with his family after more than two years in the post, Yahoo! says.
More Than Half of America Is Online
More than 104 million adults — or about 56 percent of Americans 18 years old or older — had access to the Internet at the end of 2000, according to a phone survey of 8,099 adults conducted in November and December by the Pew Internet and American Life Project. The report also found that 45 percent of children, more than 30 million kids, have online access.
Myplay Rewinds
Myplay, an online music company in Redwood City, Calif., this month said it will lay off 22 employees — 41 percent of its work force — as part of a restructuring to focus the company on music subscription services. Myplay attributed the cutbacks in part to the soft online ad market. Next month, Myplay expects to relaunch its site to offer users customized music subscription services.
CD Single Sales Dropped in 2000
Sales of recorded music declined in the last six months of 2000, according to a report from the Recording Industry Association of America. The RIAA, which represents the major music labels, says that while full-length CDs increased 3.1 percent in dollar value over 1999, manufacturers saw their bottom line drop nearly 7 percent — largely because of a dramatic reduction in shipments of CD singles, which the RIAA says fell 38.8 percent. The RIAA says sales of singles fell because of free MP3 files available on the Internet from Napster and other sources.