The Mozilla Corporation will change the default search engine provider from Internet giant Google to Russia's  leading search firm Yandex for users of the next Russian language version of its popular Firefox Web browser, according to Mozilla vice president and general counsel Harvey Anderson. Firefox users in Russia and other regions using the Russian language version of the Mozilla browser have pressed the California non-profit corporation since October to make Yandex the search engine of choice for default search queries, a request Anderson said Mozilla will implement in its forthcoming 3.1 Russian language version.As Google Expands Its Role With Chrome Mozilla Reaches Out The new Firefox with Yandex as the default search engine provider was seen by some industry analysts as a sign of increased cooperation between Mozilla and Yandex. "In October, we asked for feedback on creating a deeper partnership with Yandex, one in which we would make Yandex search features the default in our Firefox Russian language builds," Anderson wrote Friday in a message posted to his personal blog. "Our Russian users really wanted direct access to the Yandex search services in official Firefox RU [Russian language] builds," Anderson added. Yandex is Russia's most used search engine, followed by Google and Rambler, according to figures from Liveinternet. According to recent search engine usage metrics, Yandex holds nearly a 50 percent share of the search market in Russia, and after a lengthy period of planning the firm is expected to become a listed company on the United States stock market. In July 2008 Google agreed to purchase Russia's ZAO Begun advertising agency for $140 million from Rambler Media Ltd., which operates the country's third largest search engine behind Yandex and Google. Google co-founder Sergey Brin is of Russian descent, his family coming to the U.S. when he was six years old. Yandex To Replace Google In Mozilla's Russian Language Firefox Web Browser Google's deal with Begun was made in part to give Google a stronger position in the emerging online advertising market in Russia. In 2008 Rambler also signed an agreement to use Google's AdSense contextual  advertising program on its www.rambler.ru search engine site. While Mozilla continues to hold ties with Google in the form of a search advertising deal that will remain in place through at least 2011, since the Mountain View, California-based search leader entered the Web browser market in September 2008 with Chrome, some industry observers have predicted that Mozilla will increasingly look to plans that help position its Firefox browser against the new Google rival. Friday's announcement by Anderson was one of the first such moves. "We’re planning on setting Yandex as the default search provider for the Firefox 3.1 Russian locale builds," Anderson noted. "The Firefox Start Page for RU locale builds will use Yandex for search queries, and the search bar will default to Yandex," Anderson added. The move will almost certainly increase search traffic at Yandex and decrease that of Google once the new version is released in the coming weeks. Related Links :
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