NEWS
Yahoo! is aggressively moving into the mobile search market with updated software and expanded deals to preload its software onto millions of handsets.
The company announced the latest version of its Yahoo! Go 2.0 mobile phones at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas yesterday. It also said the new software would be preloaded onto more than 70 mobile handset models from top manufacturers including Motorola, Nokia, RIM and Samsung Electronics.
Yahoo! is going after the mobile market aggressively as it tries to compete with web search rival Google. With nearly three billion mobile phone users expected throughout the world by the end of 2007, it's no wonder Yahoo!, along with competitors such as Google, is interested in adapting regular web services - such as search - for mobile users. Google has also been introducing new services for the mobile phone small screen, including search.
Yahoo! has been offering a version of its mobile search tool for a year. But until now, the software has been relatively unsophisticated. The new 2.0 version of Go will change that, the company said. Specifically, it includes a feature called "oneSearch", which makes it easier for consumers to get information through an enhanced directory of local businesses and maps.
The service is free and will come preinstalled on some phones from manufacturers. It will also be available for mobile phone subscribers to download. The company plans to use advertising to generate revenue.
While internet companies, such as Google and Yahoo!, see huge potential in the mobile market, none of the traditional search companies dominates the mobile world. This is mostly because the mobile phone operators still control which applications can run on phones that operate on their networks.
Many of the carriers have begun working with smaller companies and then branding the service as their own. For example, Alltel is working with a company called JumpTap, which has developed its mobile search service. And T-Mobile USA and Verizon Wireless have each announced they're working with Medio Systems.
Marguerite Reardon writes for CNET News.com
