the internet browser/search engine wars continue........
Yahoo ousts Google with Firefox deal
Sarah Mishkin in San Francisco
©AFP
Yahoo on Wednesday sealed what it calls its “most significant partnership” in the past five years, as it nudged aside Google to replace it as the default search engine in the US for the Firefox web browser.
Yahoo and Mozilla, the not-for-profit company behind Firefox, struck a five-year deal as Yahoo tries to become more competitive in the search engine market. The tie-up will coincide with a new design for its search engine that will be launched this December.
Mozilla’s partnership with Google had become increasingly awkward as Google invested in Chrome, a browser that competes with Firefox, and as Mozilla started developing its own operating system that can run smartphones and will probably compete with Google’s Android.
Apple too has been stepping back from reliance on Google’s services for its iPhones, substituting Microsoft’s Bing for search and its own Apple Maps for mapping.
The move also comes as Yahoo is thought to be increasingly interested in ramping up the amount of revenue it derives from search, an area from which it had stepped back under previous executives.
“We believe deeply in search – it’s an area of investment, opportunity and growth for us,” said Yahoo chief executive Marissa Mayer, who is a former Google senior executive.
Yahoo in 2009 struck an agreement with Microsoft to provide Yahoo with its search technology through its Bing platform, in exchange for giving Yahoo a specified cut of the revenue derived from search. The deal runs for 10 years with the possibility of an early break, and Ms Mayer has reportedly been exploring ways for Yahoo to get back some control over its search business.
No financial terms for the Mozilla deal were disclosed. Under Mozilla’s contract with Google, the two split revenue from search advertising, which provided an important part of Mozilla’s overall revenue. Yahoo’s shares were up just under 1 per cent in after-market trading.
Additional reporting by Hannah Kuchler in Washington
Yahoo ousts Google with Firefox deal
Sarah Mishkin in San Francisco
Yahoo on Wednesday sealed what it calls its “most significant partnership” in the past five years, as it nudged aside Google to replace it as the default search engine in the US for the Firefox web browser.
Yahoo and Mozilla, the not-for-profit company behind Firefox, struck a five-year deal as Yahoo tries to become more competitive in the search engine market. The tie-up will coincide with a new design for its search engine that will be launched this December.
Mozilla’s partnership with Google had become increasingly awkward as Google invested in Chrome, a browser that competes with Firefox, and as Mozilla started developing its own operating system that can run smartphones and will probably compete with Google’s Android.
Apple too has been stepping back from reliance on Google’s services for its iPhones, substituting Microsoft’s Bing for search and its own Apple Maps for mapping.
The move also comes as Yahoo is thought to be increasingly interested in ramping up the amount of revenue it derives from search, an area from which it had stepped back under previous executives.
“We believe deeply in search – it’s an area of investment, opportunity and growth for us,” said Yahoo chief executive Marissa Mayer, who is a former Google senior executive.
Yahoo in 2009 struck an agreement with Microsoft to provide Yahoo with its search technology through its Bing platform, in exchange for giving Yahoo a specified cut of the revenue derived from search. The deal runs for 10 years with the possibility of an early break, and Ms Mayer has reportedly been exploring ways for Yahoo to get back some control over its search business.
No financial terms for the Mozilla deal were disclosed. Under Mozilla’s contract with Google, the two split revenue from search advertising, which provided an important part of Mozilla’s overall revenue. Yahoo’s shares were up just under 1 per cent in after-market trading.
Additional reporting by Hannah Kuchler in Washington
