The Power of Community: Nothing Rivals It

Yahoo’s acquisition of Rivals.com, a site dedicated to college and high school sports, is a clear acknowledgement of the Web’s prowess as a gathering place for communities of people with shared interests. Yahoo is a destination portal already, and its acquisition of Rivals.com is a sign that it seeks to bond with one of the most passionate consumer communities in existence: college sports fans. Adding Rivals.com content gives Yahoo an advantage over sports-only sites such as ESPN.com. Tapping into the devotion of college and high school sports fans is a way to attract users to Yahoo and keep them on the site to meet their content needs in other aspects of their lives. This move gives Yahoo an opportunity to enhance the brand experience it offers and become more relevant to Rivals.com users.