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Yahoo puts new spin on blogs

Evan Hansen CNET News

Published: 16 Mar 2005 09:25 GMT

Yahoo is stepping into social networking and blogging, with a new service that promises to offer a simpler way to keep in touch with people.

According to a page on its Web site, the company is inviting members to sign up for a beta test of a new product, dubbed Yahoo 360°.

"It's really about keeping connected to people you know," said Julie Herendeen, vice president for network services at Yahoo. "Yahoo 360° allows consumers to conveniently connect with the people they care about by creating and sharing blogs, photos and other content across Yahoo."

Herendeen said Yahoo had no immediate plans to add advertising to the service. "We're focused on engaging people first," she said.

Yahoo's move comes as social networking and blogging draws increased interest from rivals, including Microsoft and Google.

Microsoft in December added a blog product for its MSN Web service, called MSN Spaces. Google, meanwhile, owns Blogger and social networking site Orkut.

CNET News.com's Stefanie Olsen contributed to this report.