Yahoo swipes right

Tinder CEO at the helm after $5B Verizon sale

After a revolving door of CEOs, strategies and even names over the past decade, Yahoo Media employees are hoping this time it’s a match.

Apollo Global Management, which bought Yahoo from Verizon Media in a $5 billion deal that closed last week, named Tinder Chief Executive Officer Jim Lanzone as the new head of Yahoo on Friday.

Some employees are “quietly rejoicing” over Lanzone’s appointment, a person with knowledge of the matter told The Post. “Finally someone who knows media,” another employee said of Lanzone taking on the role of CEO.

But when Lanzone — who will replace current chief Guru Gowrappan on Sept. 27 — starts his new role, he’ll be greeted by a workforce of 9,000 that is largely whiplashed by changing strategies and multiple owners over the past decade.

Employees are fearful of the private equity firm’s reputation for cost-cutting — and some have already left in anticipation of the cuts, employees with knowledge of the matter say.

But at least some employees of Yahoo — previously known as Verizon Media and prior to that, Oath — are taking the appointment of Lanzone as a hopeful sign. They say it’s an indication Apollo will actually invest in the conglomeration of Web assets that include the faded but still trafficdriving Yahoo sites.

In a statement to The Post after Lanzone’s appointment, Apollo partner Reed Rayman emphasized the private equity firm wanted to position Yahoo for “long-term success.” He called Yahoo’s existing employee base “talented.”

“Apollo made its investment in Yahoo to strategically grow the business, expanding and enhancing the user experience across some of the industry’s best-known brands,” Rayman said.

In a memo to employees Friday morning obtained by The Post, Lanzone appeared to seek to allay fears by emphasizing he plans to make investments, not cuts.

“Many of you have worked together for a long time, have been incredibly successful doing it and have well thought-out plans in place to grow our brands from here,” he said in the memo.

He said he wasn’t looking to “create change for the sake of it.”

But some people close to Apollo have told The Post the private equity giant is “clearly going to gut all the businesses.”

Yahoo is “ripe for radical costcutting,” the people said.

Apollo Global Management has tapped Tinder CEO Jim Lanzone to head Yahoo after purchasing the media conglomerate from Verizon for $5 billion. Lanzone, who formerly led CBS Interactive, is expected to take charge of the Web company beginning Sept. 27.