Serge Bystro
Yahoo will be closing down its last office in the Middle East in April 2016. The US internet giant’s Dubai office is the last one which remained open since its offices in Amman and Cairo closed in 2014. Yahoo entered the Middle East Market in 209 when it purchased Maktoob, a Jordanian-based company for $164 million. At its height Yahoo employed more than 400 workers in the region.
The company announced its decision, saying it needs to streamline its operations. In January this year Yahoo fired almost half of its employees in Dubai, but at the time insisted that they would remain in the region. The remaining 50 staff members in the Internet City office in Dubai were informed of the company’s decision last week.
“Today we informed our Dubai-based employees that we’ve made the difficult decision to close the office by the end of April as a part of Yahoo’s effort to streamline our business and set the company up for long-term growth. We are incredibly grateful for our employees’ hard work and contributions. We will continue to provide our suite of consumer services in Arabic and English and our advertising inventory through Yahoo marketplaces and other advertising exchanges.”