Yahoo In Talks To Purchase Streaming Developer RayV

Yahoo still has at least one item left on its shopping list. Yahoo Inc. (NASDAQ:YHOO) may be about to bolster its fledgling Screen video service by acquiring RayV Inc., a California startup working to improve high-definiton streaming.

Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer is close to closing the deal with RayV, the Wall Street Journal reports, but specific details of the acquisition remain unknown. If the deal goes through, it’s likely that Yahoo would fold RayV’s technology into Screen, Yahoo’s attempt to rival Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL) and its ubiquitous YouTube platform.

The move to buy RayV comes on the heels of Yahoo’s most recent failed acquisition bids. Last year, Yahoo made attempts to purchase French streaming site DailyMotion as well as the online TV hub Hulu, but both deals went south. More recently Yahoo has had a little more success, entering talks with YouTube network Fullscreen Inc. and News Distribution Network Inc.

Since 2006, the Los Angeles-based RayV has developed high-definition cloud-based video streaming that could vastly improve Screen’s performance. RayV boasts signal strengths superior to YouTube as well as support for mobile platforms, a content management system and analytics tools.

In addition to bolstering Screen, RayV could also increase Yahoo’s reach in Israel, which has a thriving tech sector. Both Yahoo and RayV have research-and-development centers in Tel Aviv. If the deal goes through, RayV would join three other Israeli companies purchased by Yahoo: Foxytunes, Dapper and FareChase.