Yahoo returns Koprol brand rights to founders

Yahoo acquired the Koprol brand two years ago, but decided to discontinue the network earlier this month as it did not "meaningfully drive revenue or engagement". 

Full ownership of the brand and domain names will now be restored to the Koprol founders.

Yahoo said the move is a reflection of its support and commitment to Indonesia’s internet community.

Satya Witoelar, a Koprol founder, said, “Yahoo worked closely with us to arrive at an amicable outcome and we are very pleased with this decision.”

Ian McKee, CEO of Vocanic, suggested that while the gesture was an authentic move by Yahoo, it’s likely to be too late for the founders to resuscitate the brand.

“Two and a half years is a lifetime in the social-media platform environment and has probably meant they have missed the boat,” he said. “The use of Twitter has exploded and that really represents the failure of Koprol to take advantage of the opportunity.”

But others suggest the move by Yahoo! could signal a new future for Koprol. Simon Ashwin, Mindshare's head of social media for Asia-Pacific, said he expects Koprol to remain or venture into a new life. "I don’t think it will disappear given its prominence in the Indonesian market," he said.

Simon Kemp, managing director of WeAreSocial Singapore, agreed adding that he would be surprised if the founders did not leverage the opportunity given their expertise in the space. 

"If Koprol have the rights back I would guess they asked for them and are looking to do something with them," he added.