Yahoo Bids Adieu to Plus Service

Saying it wanted to focus on businesses "core to its future growth," Yahoo alerted subscribers of its Yahoo Plus service earlier this week that it will be discontinued April 23. The add-on provided extra storage, premium video, commercial free Internet radio, security features, and a broadband portal for a $5.95 USD monthly fee or $47.40 USD yearly. Yahoo claimed that a majority of its users saw such a service was not "essential," likely meaning it failed to generate enough interest among Yahoo users.

The company said it would issue a refund to yearly subscribers, but not to those on a monthly plan. Yahoo stopped billing those customers March 20. All features would revert back to those given to users of the free service. Customers wishing to retain some of the benefits would have to subscribe to them on a per-service basis, the company said.