Not So Fast: Delicious.com May Survive, After All

Responding to the frenzy that happened yesterday after news spread that Delicious.com was likely to be shut down, Yahoo says the service may live on, after all.

In a post today on the Delicious.com blog, the company emphatically says Delicious isn’t closing.

Is Delicious being shut down? And should I be worried about my data?

– No, we are not shutting down Delicious. While we have determined that there is not a strategic fit at Yahoo!, we believe there is a ideal home for Delicious outside of the company where it can be resourced to the level where it can be competitive.

What is Yahoo! going to do with Delicious?

– We’re actively thinking about the future of Delicious and we believe there is a home outside the company that would make more sense for the service and our users. We’re in the process of exploring a variety of options and talking to companies right now. And we’ll share our plans with you as soon as we can.

Those are strong statements of Yahoo’s intent to find a buyer for Delicious, but they’re also a different message than what appeared on the “Sunset slide” used in an internal webcast for Yahoo employees:

Given the widespread disappointment (and anger) that spread online yesterday at the thought of Delicious.com being “sunsetted,” Yahoo should have plenty of options to explore. Delicious.com clearly has a strong and vocal userbase, perhaps stronger and more vocal than Yahoo’s decision-makers realized.