The monitoring program, which will employ human reviewers and software, was initiated after the site was publicly criticized for selling Nazi and Klu Klux Klan memorabilia. Items that came under attack by such groups as the Anti Defamation League and the Simon Wiesenthal Center include swastika T-shirts, Klu Klux Klan robes and a print of a watercolor painted by Adolf Hitler. The monitoring program goes into full effect one week from today. In addition to the ire of civil rights groups, Yahoo has taken heat from authorities overseas.
French law prohibits the display of such material.
Last February, Ebay, a Yahoo competitor, experienced similar public pressure. The company now prohibits the sale of Nazi or Klan items that are less than 50 years old. The pricing structure at Yahoo undergoes change beginning Wednesday. Unlike other auction sites, the company does not charge a closing fee or take a percentage of final sales. Fitzgerald noted that Yahoo has come under pressure to add fees to several of its services to help reduce its dependence on advertising, which now accounts for at least 80 percent of its revenues.