Severe job cuts loom as Yahoo posts $4.8-bn loss for 2015

Yahoo chief, Marissa Mayer is set to axe jobs at the company, after the firm last week reported a whopping $4.8-billion loss for 2015, following impairment in the value of investments and assets, including Tumblr, to the tune of $4.4 billion.

Revenue came in at just under $5 billion for the year, as its adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell 30 per cent to $952 million.

During 2014, Mayer earned a whopping $42 million in cash and stock, which was 69 per cent higher than in 2013. Mayer joined in 2012.

Though Yahoo's full-year results made for disappointing reading, Mayer continued to strike an upbeat note. Further, the company's results revealed that Yahoo would close five offices and axe 1,600 jobs, or 15 per cent of its workforce.

According to company chairman Maynard Webb, Yahoo as exploring additional strategic alternatives, including separating itself from its 15-per cent stake in Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, which is worth $23 billion. That formed the bulk of Yahoo's $27-billion market capitalisation.

Last year, Mayer abandoned a plan to spin off its valuable Asian assets to shareholders, adding, she would instead consider a reverse spin-off of other businesses into a standalone company, which added to the criticism of her strategy.

Mayer said, ''Today, we're announcing a strategic plan that we strongly believe will enable us to accelerate Yahoo's transformation'', weupit.com reported.

Yahoo's board plans to consider the potential sale of its internet business at its meeting scheduled for Wednesday through Friday, according to The Wall Street Journal' report.

The company planned to double down on search, Mail and Tumblr hoping to attract new users, while at the same time, closing a number of digital magazines and services like Games and Smart TV.

Mayer also announced a $230-million write-down of Tumblr, the company's blogging platform, it acquired in 2013. Yahoo said it had experienced a ''slower ramp in monetization than we initially expected''.