Yahoo is expected to announce on Monday that well-known television news anchor Katie Couric will assume the role of "global news anchor" for the Internet pioneer. Specifically, Couric will host a high-profile interview show on Yahoo's homepage according to multiple sources as reported by All Things D.
Such a deal has been months in the making as the publication first reported the two were in negotiations back in August. Disney-owned ABC apparently holds the rights to Couric's digital output through the course of her current contract. We are told that Couric's title could change, as could the deal or the timing. Furthermore, we don't know exactly when the interview show will debut.
Sources say the show will consist of exclusive interviews with a plethora of high-profile celebrities as well as business executives. Some are reporting that she might leave her current correspondent job with ABC to work with Yahoo. Couric reportedly became interested in the idea of a web-only show after attending a Yahoo advertising event in the Caribbean last fall.
It's a risky gamble by Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer as she continues to try and give Internet users a solid reason to visit the company's homepage. Couric would be a big haul for Yahoo as she would almost certainly attract plenty of traffic in addition to being a big sell for advertisers.
It's all part of a larger effort to differentiate Yahoo from the host of other top tier search engines like Google and Bing. Whether it all pays off in the end, however, remains to be seen.