The American web service provider, Yahoo has ceased publication of content in India and has shut down Yahoo’s content operations in the country effective from August 26th, 2021. The content offerings closed include Yahoo News, Yahoo Cricket, Finance, Entertainment, and MAKERS India.
Yahoo India has been impacted by changes to regulatory laws in India that now limit the foreign ownership of media companies that operate and publish digital content in India, the company said in a statement.
The Yahoo India sites that have shut down include Yahoo Cricket, Yahoo Finance, Yahoo News, Entertainment, and MAKERS India.
“The new FDI regulations for digital media limit foreign ownership of media companies that operate and publish digital content in India in the ‘News and Current Affairs’ space, impacting our products Yahoo Cricket, Finance, News, Entertainment, and MAKERS India. You can, however, continue to access Yahoo Search and Yahoo Mail,” the statement added.
But why is Yahoo Cricket shutting down? It’s sports!
Yahoo Cricket has a ‘news’ component, which is why it was impacted under the new FDI regulations that limit foreign ownership of media companies that operate and publish digital content in India in the ‘News and Current Affairs’ space.
“Yahoo Mail is not covered by FDI regulations for digital media and is therefore not impacted by this change. Yahoo has had a long association with India and we’re really proud of the premium, local content we have provided our users here for the last 20 years. Once again, thank you for your support and trust in our brand,” the statement added.