4 CEOs later, iconic Yahoo billboard coming down

Each time someone headed out by car from San Francisco toward Oakland and points farther on, they would catch a glimpse of the iconic purple Yahoo billboard that was erected during the heyday of the dot com era.

But after surviving four CEOs - Tim Koogle, Terry Semel, Jerry Yang, Carol Bartz, and now interim chief Tim Morse - this reminder of the dizzying highs and lows of the Internet gold rush is headed for the scrap heap. "Yes, the Yahoo! board will be available starting in December 2011," Jon Charles, a vp with Clear Channel Outdoor in San Francisco confirmed.

Recounting the history behind the Yahoo billboard, Robert Boyce and Steve Stone, the two ad directors responsible for the idea, told the San Francisco Egotist that while the billboard "was always intended to be a landmark," even they were surprised at its longevity.

"We didn't expect that it would be up for years," Boyce recalled."We were really thinking a year or two."