Yahoo news exec quits ahead of restructure

Neeraj Khemlani leaves before a likely Yahoo restructure

Senior Yahoo executive Neeraj Khemlani has announced plans to leave the company just days before a major management restructure is likely to take place.

Khemlani will move to the Hearst Corporation at the end of March to be a vice president and special assistant to Hearst chief executive Frank Bennack.

Khemlani is currently head of Yahoo news and information, directing its programming content and managing the division's products, which include Yahoo News, Tech, Weather and Education. "I am delighted to join Hearst Corporation," Khemlani said.

A number of other senior Yahoo executives have left the company in recent months, including Larry Heck, vice president of search and advertising sciences at Yahoo Labs, and Qi Lu, vice president of engineering for search and advertising.

Khemlani announced his career change a few days before Yahoo chief executive Carol Bartz embarks on what sources say will be a major restructure of the company.

Bartz is expected to enforce a more "traditional" structure on Yahoo, similar to the one she employed at her previous company, Autodesk, according to The Wall Street Journal's All Things Digital blog.

Sources told the blog's co-editor, Kara Swisher, that Yahoo's media division will be especially affected, and will probably be divided into three parts: vertical programming, network programming and search monetisation. Khemlani had been named as the candidate that might head network programming.

In related news, Yahoo has unveiled an initiative which will allow marketers to target users based on their search terms. Adverts will also be customised according to the web user's age and gender.

"As the economy continues to put pressure on advertising budgets, marketers are looking for increased accountability for every dollar they spend," said Michael Walrath, Yahoo advertising marketplaces group vice president.

"Yahoo's new targeting products significantly improve the ability for search and display advertisers to reach their target audience, providing increased efficiency and accountability."