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  • Yahoo! Pays Attention to Southeast Asia

    Oct
    13
    posted by Mohan Belani on Tuesday, October 13, 2009 at 4:26pm Categories: Blog

    1094-yahoo-lo_article

    Yahoo! SEA hasn’t been specially known for being “warm and friendly” to developers. Other than the Open Hack Days they conduct around most parts of the world (none in Southeast Asia yet), the most recent one being in New York, Yahoo! SEA hasn’t been active in encouraging developers to build on their platform and build an active community of developers and harnessing that ecosystem. But all that is about to change…

    Yahoo recently hired Michael Smith Jr for their regional developer evangelist role to cover developer relations specifically around Southeast Asia. Michael, a former startup and Silicon Valley veteran, is stoked about working with developers regionally and helping them get the best out of Yahoo!’s network. I recently caught up with him to get his thoughts on some things. Here’s what he had to say.

    1) What were you doing before joining Yahoo!?

    I have done a few internet based startups in the San Fracisco, CA, area but most of my time in the US was spent in the enterprise software space. I was an early employee at WebLogic, Inc – one of the first Java appserver companies. WebLogic was acquired by BEA Systems. At BEA I was the junior CTO for Asia-Pacific and I also ran the developer marketing programs for Asia Pacific. I was based in Hong Kong and China for 5 years with BEA and it was later acquired by Oracle. For the past few years I have been living and traveling around SEA doing some consulting and going to Thai language school.

    2) Nice to hear that you have actually been living in SEA. So why Yahoo! and not some other technology MNC?

    I have been a Yahoo! user for years and Yahoo! has this enormous global brand. I figured it was time to work on the consumer side of things for a while since speaking frankly – enterprise software is not all that fun. Suits, ties, powerpoint and sales call. Yahoo! is all about the consumer and with my role it will be all about developers. I am really excited by the future. Working with Yahoo! means getting to work on sites that have millions of viewers, interesting problems of scale and I get to touch consumers in a fun way.

    3) What did you see in Yahoo and the position that attracted you to it?

    Well – I love SEA and I dig working on tough problems. Yahoo! is well known as a consumer brand but less well known to developers.  So I get to focus on my favorite part of the world while getting to tackle tough challenges – how to get the developers of SEA to focus on developing for the Yahoo! ecosystem. I try not to tell anyone this but I think I have one of the best jobs in the world. No joke.

    3) I’m pretty sure the developers are excited to work with Yahoo!. Being an American who has lived in Asia for a while, how are the developers here different from US?

    I don’t think they are different as they are a product of their environment. America has amazing bandwidth, millions of users and in some sense is very cutting edge but at the same time America is very competitive and hard for startups to build an audience. Finding money and talent is probably easier as well.

    SEA has different problems – culture and language are part of it but also the audience is much more diverse and less sophisticated so the challenges are different.

    The culture is a little more important in Asia where as in America nobody cares so much since they focus on building cool apps and making money. I think somewhere in between is a better balance. We all know there is huge growth ahead in Asia and smart developers will cash in on the trend. I hope to bridge the gap, expand the networks across continents and hope that my experience working in both parts of the world can benefit the developers I am able to work with.

    4) What do you think startups and developers really need, and how do you aim to help them in your position at Yahoo?

    Startups need cool technology and Yahoo has some great stuff – so part of my focus will be on making sure developers are fully aware of what Yahoo has to offer. I think most developers in the region are not aware of the whole story.

    Developers also need a network of other startups and mentors – I hope to be that for the ones I come in contact with both personally and as an employee of Yahoo!.

    Let’s face it though – startups need an audience and Yahoo! has the biggest in SEA so I hope to show startups how they can tap on the Yahoo! audience to grow their business. Both the startups and Yahoo! will be winners.

    5) So moving forward, what are some of the upcoming projects and initiatives you are working on that developers can look forward to in the upcoming months ?

    Yahoo! is going to ramp up their exposure in SEA in a big way. Look for us to be at all the events we can – BarCamp, e27 events, and any other place it makes sense for us to share and to listen. Stay tuned for regional Open Hack Days (e27: We’re guessing that an Open Hack Day SEA should be coming up soon).

    Also stay tuned for more Yahoo events (beer nights) where you can come meet Yahoo! folks and hear about the Yahoo! Developer Network

    I plan on racking up a lot of airmiles so I look forward to meeting all of you in your own country!

    Seems like Yahoo! is on the right path to engaging developers, not just locally but regionally. It helps when technology giants work with developers and startups, rather than against them. The leverage they can provide is tremendous. Some companies, like Apple, use platforms like the iPhone and the App Store as a way to provide developers and startups with wide distribution channels. Others, like Microsoft, use tools and free software (BizSpark), to support developers and startups by reducing licensing and technology costs hassle. Yahoo!’s wide SEA network is a great way for them to provide startups and developers with distribution across all its web properties. With Michael coming on board, things are starting to look rosier for developers and startups alike.


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