Boston, MA 09/24/2014 (wallstreetpr) – Yandex NV (NASDAQ:YNDX) is slowly expanding beyond its core search engine business having started to tap into the handyman-referral service. The new service is similar to Google Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL)’s Thumbtack Inc. The new service named Yandex.Master will be used to match users with local suppliers for different services such as renovation, gadget repairing and cleaning.
Diversification of Revenue Streams
Yandex NV (NASDAQ:YNDX) plans to change the way it charges service providers as of next year after deciding to go with pay-per-lead model. Yandex enjoys a kind of monopoly in Russia as it’s market share is thought to be double that of Google. The search engine company has resorted to diversifying it’s revenue stream by shifting focus to e-commerce and online video content as one of the ways of attracting more users.
The diversification of service offerings comes in the wake of the company registering slow growth over the past three-quarters as the market is thought to be saturated with web users. Yandex. Master is the second service started by 26-year-old Lev Volozh who is the son of the current CEO Arkady Volozh.
Stable Revenue Stream
The First project initiated by the young Volozh was the Yandex NV (NASDAQ:YNDX). Ride started in 2011 and is used for booking rides online. It is still unclear whether Yandex. Master will leave up to expectations. Stakes are high for the new service to be a success considering Google’s Thumbtack ramped up $100 million in revenue last month.
Customers will be contacted by service providers via Yandex NV (NASDAQ:YNDX) call center on the new service, a move that will allow the search engine company to charge suppliers for each contact they make. The service according to Volozh will provide the company with the much-needed stable revenue stream instead of having to rely on commissions.
