Assertion Partly supported AI assessment confidence: 95% certainty 3/5 debate potential 1/5

Lanzone: Ask Jeeves 50x'd its stock after adopting Google AdWords in 2002

Jim Lanzone · Yahoo CEO Jim Lanzone: The Web is Still a Great Business · Apr 4, 2024 · at 36:17

Yahoo CEO Jim Lanzone describes the turnaround and eventual sale of Ask Jeeves to IAC after adopting Google AdWords.

0:00 / 0:14exact quote · 14.2s

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“And in 2002, we switched to Google AdWords where I think we're the first ones to do that, which helped us become profitable and set our stock on a, I mean, I think we, 50 X that thing from there. And then we sold I see in February of 2005.”

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The claim, plainly

Ask Jeeves switched to Google AdWords in 2002, became profitable, saw its stock increase roughly 50x, and was sold to IAC in February 2005.

a quote alone can be ambiguous, so this restates it with the references and context of the conversation around it resolved. AI-written; the tape below the player is the source.

Assessment

The claim bundles four historical assertions regarding Ask Jeeves, three of which are accurate while one contains a minor dating error: (1) In July 2002, Ask Jeeves contracted with Google to switch its paid search provider from Overture to Google AdWords/sponsored listings, which went live in September 2002. (2) Ask Jeeves posted its first profitable quarter in Q4 2002 and full-year profits in 2003 and 2004. (3) The stock appreciated roughly 50x from its 2001 low of ~$0.80-$0.90 to its 2004 peak of ~$44-$45 per share. (4) However, the acquisition agreement by IAC (InterActiveCorp) was announced on March 21, 2005, and closed on July 19, 2005, rather than in February 2005.

Ask Jeeves announced its multi-year Google AdWords partnership on July 18, 2002, replacing Overture starting in September 2002.
Ask Jeeves achieved its first quarterly net profit in Q4 2002 ($2 million) and sustained profitability in 2003 ($24.8M-$26M net income) and 2004 ($52.4M net income).
ASKJ stock rose from a 2001 trough of ~$0.80-$0.90 to a 2004 high of ~$44-$45 per share, representing an approximate 50x gain.
IAC's definitive agreement to acquire Ask Jeeves for $1.85 billion was formally announced on March 21, 2005 (closing July 19, 2005), not February 2005.

Checked against

[1] cnet.com [2] blogspot.com [3] submitexpress.com [4] blogspot.com [5] encyclopedia.com [6] simpleprogrammer.com [7] advfn.com [8] sfgate.com

"Ask Jeeves" stock price high 2004 2005 "ASKJ" Ask Jeeves profitable 2002 2003 SEC 10-K "Ask Jeeves" "profitable" "fourth quarter" "2002" OR "first quarter" "2003" Ask Jeeves Google AdWords 2002 partnership agreement "Ask Jeeves" "July 2002" OR "July 18, 2002" "Google" AdWords OR "sponsored links" "Ask Jeeves" stock 2004 high "$40" OR "$42" OR "$45" OR "$35" OR "$38" "Ask Jeeves" stock low "2001" "2002" "0." OR "cents" OR "1." "Ask Jeeves" stock high "2004" "40." OR "41." OR "42." OR "43." OR "44." OR "45." "Ask Jeeves" "Form 10-K" "December 31, 2003" "net income" OR "profitable" IAC acquires Ask Jeeves announcement date March 2005 February 2005

assessed as of 2026-09-02

This assessment is an AI reading of a public statement, made against the cited references with the confidence shown. It can be wrong. The quote, the tape and the references are all on this page; if something is off, use report an error below. full disclaimer →

Mentioned

Ask Jeeves Google AdWords IAC Jim Lanzone

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