Yahoo to lay off five percent of workforce

SAN FRANCISCO - Struggling internet portal Yahoo is to lay off up to five percent of its workers - or up to 700 employees - as it struggles to compete with the likes of Google and Facebook, sources at the company confirmed Tuesday.

Most of the layoffs will come from the company’s products division which designs and builds consumer and advertising services such as Yahoo Mail.

The move will represent Yahoo’s fourth mass layoff in the past three years, as the web pioneer, which was an early leader in internet search tries to cut costs to retain profitability in the face of declining advertising and user defections to newer websites

like Google and Facebook.

The company currently employs some 14,100 people.