Active Stocks
Thu Mar 28 2024 15:59:33
  1. Tata Steel share price
  2. 155.90 2.00%
  1. ICICI Bank share price
  2. 1,095.75 1.08%
  1. HDFC Bank share price
  2. 1,448.20 0.52%
  1. ITC share price
  2. 428.55 0.13%
  1. Power Grid Corporation Of India share price
  2. 277.05 2.21%
Business News/ Tech-news / News/  Yahoo replaces Google as default search on Firefox in US
BackBack

Yahoo replaces Google as default search on Firefox in US

Under the new agreement, Google, Bing and other search services will be available as alternatives, Mozilla said in a blog post

Yahoo’s search service is under pressure, with the Web portal’s share of the US search-advertising revenue projected to shrink to 5.6% in 2014 from 6.1% last year, according to EMarketer. Photo: AFPPremium
Yahoo’s search service is under pressure, with the Web portal’s share of the US search-advertising revenue projected to shrink to 5.6% in 2014 from 6.1% last year, according to EMarketer. Photo: AFP

San Francisco: Yahoo! Inc. replaced Google Inc. as the default search engine on Firefox browsers in the US, as Yahoo chief executive officer Marissa Mayer seeks out more partnerships to boost the Web portal’s traffic and revenue.

Google had been the automatic search option for the Internet browser, developed by Mountain View, California-based Mozilla Corp., since 2004. Under the agreement announced on Wednesday, Google, Microsoft Corp.’s Bing and other search services will be available as alternatives, No. 3-ranked Mozilla said in a blog post.

Mayer, who has been working to turn around the Sunnyvale, California-based company since taking the helm two years ago, is looking for ways to bolster Yahoo’s search business, which makes up about 40% of sales, minus revenue passed to partner sites. Earlier this year, Yahoo, which depends on Microsoft for its search technology, struck a deal with Yelp Inc. to deliver content from the review website.

“At Yahoo, we believe deeply in search—it’s an area of investment, opportunity and growth for us," Mayer said in a statement on Wednesday. “This partnership helps to expand our reach in search and also gives us an opportunity to work closely with Mozilla to find ways to innovate more broadly in search, communications and digital content."

Yahoo’s search service is under pressure, with the Web portal’s share of the US search-advertising revenue projected to shrink to 5.6% in 2014 from 6.1% last year, according to EMarketer Inc. Google has maintained its leadership, claiming more than 70% of since 2010.

An e-mail to Google seeking comment wasn’t immediately returned.

Search share

Yahoo shares rose 1.1% in extended trading after the announcement. The stock declined 2.3% to $50.58 at the close in New York, leaving it up 25% this year.

Firefox has also lost ground to other browsers, according to NetMarketShare. In October, it held 14% of the global market, compared with 21% for Google’s Chrome and 58% for Microsoft’s Internet Explorer.

“It’s a nice little win for Yahoo, but I expect the boost will be fairly small in terms of search market share," said Danny Sullivan, founding editor of Marketing Land and Search Engine Land. “Having said that, since Yahoo’s own search share is so small, picking up a per cent or two can go a long way for their revenue."

Mozilla said the agreement with Google had come up for renewal, providing a good time to evaluate its options. The new Yahoo search feature is scheduled to debut next month. China and Russia will get locally based default services.

“In evaluating our search partnerships, our primary consideration was to ensure our strategy aligned with our values of choice and independence, and positions us to innovate and advance our mission in ways that best serve our users and the Web," Mozilla said. Bloomberg

Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed – it's all here, just a click away! Login Now!

Catch all the Business News, Market News, Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.
More Less
Published: 20 Nov 2014, 09:29 AM IST
Next Story footLogo
Recommended For You
Switch to the Mint app for fast and personalized news - Get App