Why Didn't Yahoo! Just Buy Yelp?

Everyone wants to know what you and your friends think, including Yahoo! . The website empire formerly known as the world's largest portal is a little more social today, thanks to its Alike, a ratings app for smart handsets.

Think of it as a more social version of OpenTable. Rate a restaurant in Alike, share with your friends, and the app recommends other places you might enjoy. Alike also allows users to rate bars and shops, according to CNET, which reported on the deal. Terms weren't disclosed.

Should investors cheer? Anything that gives Yahoo! a greater presence in mobile is likely a net win. But we may also be past the point where incremental moves matter, says Tim Beyers of Motley Fool Rule Breakers and Motley Fool Supernova. In the video below, he argues that Yahoo! would have done better to make a bid for popular mobile directory service Yelp . Please watch, and then be sure to leave a comment to let us know what you think.

Yahoo!'s bid for a bigger slice of the mobile pie comes at an interesting time. So many different companies are vying for a seat at the table, that it can be daunting to know how to profit from the extraordinary growth of mobile computing. Fortunately, The Motley Fool answers several of the key questions in a new research report entitled "The Next Trillion-Dollar Revolution." In it, our analyst describes why this seismic shift will dwarf any other technology revolution seen before it, and also names a company he believes to be at the forefront of the trend. Access the report right now by clicking here -- it's free.

The article Why Didn't Yahoo! Just Buy Yelp? originally appeared on Fool.com.

Fool contributor Tim Beyers is a member of the Motley Fool Rule Breakers stock-picking team and the Motley Fool Supernova Odyssey I mission. He didn't own shares in any of the companies mentioned in this article at the time of publication. Check out Tim's web home and portfolio holdings or connect with him on Google+, Tumblr, or Twitter, where he goes by @milehighfool. You can also get his insights delivered directly to your RSS reader.

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