Verizon, Microsoft in mobile-search deal

LAS VEGAS--One piece of Microsoft's Consumer Electronics Show news is out of the bag. The company has struck a deal that will see its search engine become the default on Verizon Wireless cell phones for the next five years.

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer was set to unveil the pact as part of his keynote later Wednesday. However, Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg mentioned the deal at a Citigroup conference earlier Wednesday, according to a Reuters report.

The Wall Street Journal reported last year that the two companies were working on some sort of deal. And it's not the first time that Microsoft has partnered to get content onto Verizon phones.

The Verizon deal is just one part of Ballmer's keynote, which is expected to focus heavily on Windows 7.

A beta version of Windows 7 got leaked onto the Internet late last month, raising hopes that an officially sanctioned version would be available soon. A Microsoft developer's blog post earlier in December also appeared to indicate that the beta would come in January.

[Larabee90]

Great for the company that neuters handsets and could care less about users. Now none of their users will be able to find anything when they search, but MS money will roll in!

[orphu]

Apparently you've never used any of MS's search products on a handheld. They work surprisingly well.

[JCPayne]

Here-here... Verizon has always been too restrictive for me. But, of curiosity do they have any devices these days that allow you to tether (without having to pay for an expensive service plan and separate software package to do so?)

[Vegaman_Dan]

Unless this is on a smartphone or something with some screen real estate, then search on a mobile phone is like looking through a soda straw to watch a football game. You just can't see enough of it to really make it usable.

[gmclean0402]

iPhone and Google. Or G1 and T-Mobile.. MS and Verizon?? Really? Is this the dry and boring leading the crippled and ugly? *sigh*

@Vegaman_Dan: Fantastic analogy.

[eltoro2827]

Yay.....no more google as a default search engine. good move verizon.

[t8]

If there is a browser on the phone, why can't you change the home page and search to google.com?
I am not from the US and never had a verizon phone, so scuse the ignorance.