T-Mobile USA, and Yahoo announced that, beginning today, Yahoo! oneSearch powers mobile Internet searches made through T-Mobile's new web2goSM service.
Web2go makes it easier to view and navigate the Web through a customizable home page, a simplified shopping and download experience, and Yahoo's mobile search experience.
Yahoo! oneSearch provides customers who search through T-Mobile's web2go with access to what they are looking for - from news, financial information, weather conditions, Flickr photos and Web images, to Web and mobile web sites. Yahoo! oneSearch will also display relevant ringtones, wallpaper, games and other content available in the T-Mobile Store within search results.
Yahoo! oneSearch is designed for the needs of the mobile user, returning results grouped around the user's query intent. For instance, when users search for a sports team, Yahoo returns the latest scores, schedules, team profiles, roster, news, images and a link to the team's Web site.
Also beginning today, Yahoo! will deliver mobile sponsored search results and in some cases display advertising within the search results presented through T-Mobile's web2go.
The long-scheduled announcement came hours after Microsoft Chairman Steve Ballmer told an audience that, while he has no interest in reviving any attempts to purchase Yahoo, he is interested in a partnership pegged to searches.
"Let me be clear," Ballmer said at Microsoft's annual shareholder meeting. "We are done with all acquisition discussions with Yahoo."
Some analysts have interpreted Ballmer's public comments about a Yahoo buyout as negotiating posturing, and suspect Microsoft might still want to grab Yahoo at a low price, in hopes of improving their joint position in online search and advertising. However, analysts have also said Microsoft is likely to wait until next year before deciding.
Balmer also said that Microsoft was still interested in pursuing a search deal with Yahoo.
"There's no active discussion on that front. But we'd be very open to it. But acquisition discussions are finished," he said.
Yahoo is also reportedly continuing discussions to buy Time Warner Inc.'s AOL business,
Bloomberg rerpoted on Thursday citing people familiar with the matter. Time Warner would hand over AOL's advertising business to Yahoo in exchange for a stake in the combined company, the sources added.
Such a deal would bolster Yahoo's position in the market for so- called display advertising and add subscribers for services such as e-mail and instant messaging.