Yahoo! oneSearch Asia with MTNL India, CSL HongKong, Smart Phillipines, Sun Philippines, Vibo Taiwan and ad deals with Idea India and Maxis Malaysia
Yahoo! (NASDAQ:YHOO) today announced several new mobile initiatives for the Asia Pacific region, including five new Yahoo! oneSearch partnerships with leading mobile operators including Mahanagar Telephon Nigam Limited (MTNL, India), Hong Kong CSL Limited (CSL), Smart Communications Inc. (Smart, Philippines), Digital Mobile Phlis, Inc. (SUN Cellular, Philippines) and Vibo Telecom Inc. (Vibo, Taiwan), as well as strategic mobile advertising partnerships with Idea Cellular Ltd. (India) and Maxis Communications Bhd (Malaysia).
Additionally, Yahoo! announced localized versions of Yahoo! Go 3.0 for India, Australia and Southeast Asia, including a local language version for Indonesia, and an English version of Yahoo! oneSearch with voice that recognizes regional accents. The company also announced the launch of new mobile widgets for the Asia Pacific region including Yahoo! Cricket, Yahoo! Answers and Showtimes (Yahoo! India Movies), as well as a MTV Asia mobile widget featuring news updates and music charts.
“Sixty signed Yahoo! oneSearch partner deals is a great milestone, putting us on our way to our goal of ultimately connecting the billions of mobile consumers around the globe with the best possible Internet experience,” said Marco Boerries, executive vice president, Connected Life, Yahoo!. “Today’s partnerships and product launches further Yahoo!’s global momentum and serve to reinforce our strong position in the mobile industry.”
What we think?
I think Yahoo! has been aggressive in mobile. I also think oneSearch is very good and simple. I think that Yahoo! has created a benchmark for mobile. But, at the same time I do think Yahoo! services are too monolithic and there are not enough Yahoo! fans to create an ecosystem. oneSearch is a strong lead into mobile – but I don’t think it has staying capacity. I fear that Yahoo! will do all the hard work of being an early mover and adopter but once users are educated new bespoke or mass market services can take centre stage.
Saying that, since I hear that Yahoo! paid to be on O2 – my thoughts are tarnished. I know that I don’t have this in writing and it might be lies but that is the fear of bad press. If it is a rumour then it needs to disappear – if it is true then it needs to be explained.
But to end on a positive note – Asia is a huge growth market. A place of opportunity and one that drives adoption. I am now testing Fire Eagle and I do like it. More of these non-Yahoo! branded services and a stronger broader eco-system or community mobile spirit – might prove me wrong.
I know I joked about the name Fire Eagle in the past -but now if it takes the emphasis away from Yahoo! I do see strategic direction.
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