Verizon, Google Close to Mobile Search Deal

Google Inc. and Verizon Communications Inc. reportedly are nearing an agreement on a wide-ranging partnership, under which the latter company would install a Google-powered search engine on Verizon cell phones, and the two would split ad revenue.

Citing people familiar with the situation, a report from the Wall Street Journal says the two companies are close to establishing a revenue sharing mobile search deal. The deal is not yet final and there are still a few key issues to be resolved with regard to branding and financial terms, the report states.

According to the WSJ report, Verizon and Google could close a deal within the next few weeks. However, both the parties denied to comment upon rumors.

If the deal completes successfully, it would establish Google as the default mobile search engine for all of Verizon's handsets in exchange for a share of ad revenue.

Rampant rumors about the possible Verizon-Google deal have been floating on the Internet for almost a year now.

In the event the two companies arrived at such an agreement, it would likely be a big success for Internet search mammoth. While the search powerhouse Google is a dominant power in the Internet space, it is still to make a significant impact in the cell phone arena.

The deal would also help Verizon Wireless bring in more mobile ad revenue, which generally lack vitality. Verizon has 68.7 million customers over all.
According to estimates from Nielsen Mobile, which tracks wireless trends, of the 36 million Verizon Wireless customers who access data using their phones, about 13.1 million search the Web.

Nielsen estimates that nearly 3.8 million of Verizon subscribers use the network to access a search engine like Google or Yahoo. Merely 2.3 million customers use the most prominent search tool on Verizon’s phones, which bears its own brand.

This year, Google has established a revenue sharing mobile search deal with several companies. In May, the Mountain View, California-based Internet search and online advertising company became Sprint's default mobile search provider. The two companies announced at the time that the new Sprint handsets will offer Google's local search (for GPS-enabled devices), Google Maps Mobile, and YouTube accessibility.

In February, Google and Nokia announced a search partnership, under which the former company integrated its search engine with the Nokia search application, starting with high-end models, including the N96, N78, 6210 Navigator and 6220 Classic.

Google has been persuading several wireless carriers in the US to load their device with the new Google services, such as maps and Yellow Pages-style local business searches and technical specifications that will enable the phone to offer a better mobile Web browsing experience than current products.