Ask.com CEO steps down amid shake-up

Ask.com Chief Executive Officer Jim Lanzone is leaving the company in a management shake-up at parent InterActiveCorp, the company announced late Wednesday.

(Credit: Ask.com)

Lanzone took over the CEO spot in April 2006 when then-CEO Steve Berkowitz left to head up Microsoft's MSN and Windows Live expansion. Lanzone will serve as entrepreneur-in-residence at Redpoint Ventures while remaining in an advisory role at Ask.com for a few months.

The Ask.com leadership change comes as IAC prepares to spin off HSN, Ticketmaster, Interval International, and Lending Tree.

"These changes are intended to strengthen and streamline the operating structure at IAC, both leading up to our intended spin-offs, and beyond," Barry Diller, CEO of IAC, said in a statement. He credited Lanzone with turning around Ask.com in the last two years.

Lanzone will be replaced by Jim Safka, who will also continue as CEO of Primal Ventures, a venture unit for IAC that incubates business for. Safka, 39, previously was CEO of Match.com and held management positions at AT&T Wireless and E-Trade Financial and worked at Intuit, Warner Bros., and Paramount Pictures.

Meanwhile, Scott Garell has been named president of Ask.com. Garell has been CEO of IAC Consumer Applications & Portals, which includes Evite, since 2005. Prior to that he was executive vice president of domestic sites and search, including Ask.com.

Replacing Garell is John Park, currently executive vice president and general manager of toolbars and portals within the portals division.

Despite dumping the Ask Jeeves name and redesigning the site last year, Ask.com remains the No. 4 search engine, behind Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft, but ahead of AOL. Ask.com's U.S. market share has inched up over the past year to 4.1 percent from 3.7 percent, according to Hitwise. It was 5 percent in mid-2006, Hitwise reported.

IAC acquired Ask.com in 2005 for $1.5 billion.

[Xtoo]

Ask.com is really Ask."CON"

This guy is leaving because of the lawsuit Ask.com is in. I own a
business and had to pull out of their advertising services due to
extremely high clicks I had to pay for without being able to track
where they were coming from. I am able to see where the
Google and Yahoo clicks cone from but Ask.com had misterious
untrackable sources which cost me hundreds of dollars. I called
and question about it. The Ask rep didn't even bother to look into
it and politely offer cancel the service. That's when I knew and
mentioned that they were a SCAM. A few weeks later I get a
package letter with information about a lawsuit against Ask.com
for overcharges in phony clicks.

[insider11]

not true

Nothing to do with lawsuit. This is minor - google and yahoo have tens of such.

Just plain old business. You gotta make money if you can't you are out.

[frankz00]

He needed to go

The guy wasn't producing. I usually use ask.com to find the stuff that Google can't. It used to be better with direct questions. I don't know why they decided to do away with that feature.

[insider11]

lanzone

Diller fired Lanzone and for the right reasons - Lanzone made no money for him, as simple as that. Lanzone tried to run ask like a little start up was not ready for five hundred people company. Good news for ask with Safka and Garell taking over - company badly needs profesional managers.