Yahoo Japan To Boost Collaboration With Yahoo! Inc.

Yahoo Japan Corp. YAHOF said it will expand its collaboration with Yahoo! Inc. YHOO.

The Japanese Internet company that is 43 percent owned by Softbank Corp. SFTBF named Yahoo's Chief Counsel Ronald S. Bell to its board on Thursday.

With Yahoo Chief Financial Officer Kenneth A. Goldman is already a director of the Japanese company, Bell's addition will "further strengthen collaboration," Yahoo Japan said.

Yahoo Japan also named Softbank President Nikesh Arora as chairman, replacing Softbank's CEO Masayoshi Son, who will remain a director.

Arora was named to the board by Yahoo Japan to "help maximize its corporate value as an Internet company," according to Yahoo Japan, which reduced the sixe of its board to nine members, from 11.

Arora, a former Google Inc. executive, is seen as as a potential successor to Son at Softbank, according to Reuters.

Besides its stake in Yahoo Japan, Softbank is the biggest investor in Alibaba Group Holding Ltd BABA.

SoftBank, which has a majority stake in Sprint Corp. S, also has plans to invest $10 billion in India's fast-growing market for Internet-based retail sales, according to Reuters.