Yahoo Answers, a question-and-answer platform that was launched more than 15 years ago and became one of the largest sources of information (and disinformation) on the Internet, will be removed on May 4.
The Verizon-owned website announced the cancellation of the platform on Monday with a brief statement on the Yahoo Answers home page. The portal will go into “read-only” mode on April 20. Users who wish to do so will have until June 30 to download the content, Yahoo explained on its help page.
“Although Yahoo Answers was once a key part of Yahoo’s products and services, it has become less popular over the years as the needs of our members have changed,” Yahoo said in an email to users. of Answers obtained by The Verge.
“So we’ve decided to divert our resources from Yahoo Answers to focus on products that better serve our members and deliver on Yahoo’s promise to provide premium, trustworthy content,” the email continues.
Yahoo Answers, like much of the internet, had become a cesspool of conspiracy theories and outrageous questions that dragged the Yahoo brand upward. For example, one of the top questions on the website Tuesday morning asks “Is Yahoo Answers removed because conservatives have exposed America’s socialist takeover?”
Verizon acquired Yahoo in 2017 for $ 4.4 billion and is now part of the Verizon Media Group, which also includes AOL. Verizon recently announced plans to double down on the Yahoo name and create new subscription services on its behalf. Yahoo claims to have 20 million daily unique visitors.
