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Sunnyvale, California-based Internet company Yahoo has announced the signing of a significant global agreement with Madrid-based Telefonica S.A., the Spanish telecommunications group that  is one of the largest mobile service providers in the world. The long-term agreement will make Yahoo's oneSearch mobile search product the sole search provider for Telefonica's local subsidiaries in 15 countries in Britain and Latin America, including England and Ireland.  This will effectively double the number of cell phone users who can use Yahoo’s oneSearch mobile search product, expanding the company's reach to an estimated 200 million people. As a part of the agreement, Telefonica's customers in affected areas will also be able to use Yahoo Mail and to access photos from Yahoo's Flickr Web site.
Marco Boerries, executive vice president of Yahoo's Connected Life Division, said, "Yahoo's new partnership with Telefonica furthers our leadership in mobile and demonstrates our commitment to working with partners to enhance the Internet experience for customers on their mobile phone."
Yahoo has recently upgraded its oneSearch mobile search engine which is designed specifically for mobile phones, and when combined with the new agreement with Telefonica, the company appears to be moving towards making up ground against search leader Google, which has entered into global mobile search deals of its own. "Today we’ve doubled the number of mobile phone users who have instant access to our oneSearch mobile search service," said Yahoo's Senior Vice President of Broadband and Mobile, Steve Boom, writing on the company's blog known as Yodel Anecdotal. According to Boom the agreement between Yahoo and Telefonica will offer advantages to affected customers. "Residents on the go in countries like the UK, Ireland, Brazil, Mexico, Chile, and Argentina no longer need to search through a sea of links to track down news, images, weather conditions, etc." The agreement is expected to take effect in the first quarter of 2008. While the companies did not put a dollar figure on the agreement, Yahoo did disclose their intention to share advertising revenue with Telefonica. The deal is Yahoo's largest ever with a wireless carrier. Yahoo Mail and Flickr Access The agreement allows affected Telefonica mobile subsidiary customers to access Yahoo Mail through Telefonica's Mail Express service. These customers will also be able to access photos on Yahoo's Flickr Web site. Boom said the Spanish company's customers will be able to "view and share their photos, check out their friends’ pictures, leave comments, browse, or search over a billion images contributed by the Flickr community." 200 Million and Counting Yahoo's agreement with Telefonica greatly expands the Internet company's reach, which now encompasses: - 200 million estimated mobile consumers
- 7 major mobile operating partners, including 6 in Asia Yahoo announced this spring
- 30 countries across Europe, Asia and the Americas
The ultimate goal of Yahoo's mobile service is to connect one billion users globally, according to Boom, and the company now offers a direct comparison between its oneSearch service and a similar type of mobile service offered by rival Google's mobile service, in the form of a 21-page .PDF file. One of the key features of Yahoo's oneSearch is the ability to retrieve and display Web information directly on the first screen encountered, saving customers from have to sift through numerous small screens of search results. Yahoo's Mobile Goes Global with Telefonica Deal Telefonica is the parent company of O2, one of the largest mobile providers in England, and yesterday's announced agreement signals and end to the search partnership Yahoo has for several years had with Microsoft's MSN on O2. The deal also affects customers of Telefonica's subsidiaries in Brazil, Mexico and Argentina, and makes Yahoo the sole search service in 11 of the 15 countries covered. In Venezuela, Peru and Ecuador, Yahoo is to become the preferred search partner under the deal. The sizable deal appears to be aimed at helping Yahoo increase advertising revenue and gain market share. Related Links:
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10:24 am on Oct. 2, 2007 (utc 0)