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Google-Verizon Deal Would Put Google in Hands of 68MM Users

Google and Verizon Wireless are reportedly on the verge of a deal that will make Google the official search engine for all Verizon-powered cell phones.

The deal gives Google and its advertisers 68 million wireless customers who would see Google as their default mobile search engine. Verizon is also considering putting a Google search bar on the home screen of all its phones, according to The Wall Street Journal (via Network World). Verizon may even put Google on its own web portal and on its FiOS TV service, and the companies will split the revenue.

The deal guarantees that Verizon will not try to offer a competing search engine of its own, and makes it far less likely that Verizon users will go to rival search engines, says Irwin Lazar, an analyst at Nemertes Research.

Google has also made a deal with Sprint to have it be the exclusive search provider on all 40 Sprint phones, writes Daily Tech. AT&T, the nation’s largest wireless carrier, has signed with Yahoo for its Media Net search engine.

The potential Google-Verizon deal signals a significant shift in the way that mobile service carriers are beginning to view technology partners, writes MediaPost. Mike Boland, senior analyst at The Kelsey Group, says the shift began with AT&T’s unprecedented deal with Apple for the iPhone.

Now that so many iPhone subscribers have become hooked to its streamlined search and browsing interface, they are increasingly unwilling to pay for poorer mobile experiences, says Boland. That leaves carriers scrambling to partner with tech providers as a result.