Yahoo moves into tablet market with new apps

Yahoo this week drew the curtain on a number of new applications and products that show the internet company is ready to embrace the tablet and smartphone markets.

As expected, Yahoo unveiled its new Livestand application, a digital newsstand that presents content from third-party news sources as well as Yahoo's own news feed in a magazine-like format. The app includes hundreds of titles, including Forbes, ABC News and several magazines from publishers Bonnier and Source Interlink Media.

Among the other apps presented are Yahoo! Weather, a weather program for Android™ devices; IntoNow, a social app designed to make TV more engaging, and Yahoo! Mail, a tablet-based mail reader.

Yahoo has struggled in recent years against search engine rivals Google and Microsoft®. The company has been criticized for lacking an apparent comprehensive strategy, especially in the burgeoning mobile market. Yahoo saw even more troubled waters when it ousted CEO Carol Bartz in September.

Nevertheless, the company is projecting a sense of confidence with these new apps as it prepares for the tablet-friendly future.