Analysts: New Yahoo CEO must shed assets for better focus

Whoever takes embattled Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang's place will need to pare the former Web sweetheart's services to effectively compete in a market where it is under siege from Google Inc. and multiple social media players for online advertising, analysts say.

Yang, who Monday announced that he will step down as Yahoo's CEO once a replacement is found, had taken multiple unsuccessful steps in recent months to turn around the flagging Internet pioneer. In May, he fended off Microsoft's move to buy Yahoo, and then failed to consummate a planned search partnership with Google.

Then, after Google backed away from its proposed deal with Yahoo earlier this month, Yang called on Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer to re-start negotiations to buy the company.

Yang is not perceived as having that kind of "boldness or decisiveness" that a company competing in today's Web landscape needs, said Andrew Frank, an analyst at Gartner. "[Yang's departure is] a sign that Yahoo needs to really find leadership that can restore confidence in the company. I don't think they are so much in danger of immediately going under as they are in facing continued erosion of confidence in the company's leadership and direction."

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