Report: Yahoo layoffs hit Flickr
Three are let go from Flickr, including George Oates, who came up with the original, minimalist design for the popular, Yahoo-owned photo-sharing community.
The Guardian is reporting that George Oates, along with two others on the Flickr team have been let go as a part of this week's Yahoo layoffs. Oates was one of the first employees at Flickr before its acquisition by Yahoo in 2005, and more notably its former chief designer.
Flickr, along with its Yahoo sister site Delicious, are well known for having a minimal, and angular user interface. Oates was a big part of that. After her stint as Flickr's chief designer, Oates moved on to become a senior program manager where she headed up Flickr's Commons project.
Oates has made no confirmation of the move on her personal blog or Flickr profile page, however former Yahoo Personals product manager Susan Mernit is confirming the news.