Yahoo buys image-recognition startup for Flickr

AP FILE PHOTO

SUNNYVALE, California – Yahoo’s latest acquisition will bring image-recognition technology to its Flickr service for sharing photos.

The Internet company is getting the new tools and expertise through its purchase of a start-up called LookFlow. Financial terms of the deal announced Wednesday weren’t disclosed.

It’s a small acquisition, as have been most of the more than 20 deals that Yahoo has completed since hiring Marissa Mayer as its CEO 15 months ago. The one exception was the Internet blogging service Tumblr, which cost Yahoo Inc. $1.1 billion earlier this year.

Yahoo is picking up five LookFlow engineers in its latest deal.

Mayer, a former Google Inc. executive, has been particularly interesting in snapping up startups with expertise in making applications for smartphones and tablets.