Sprint Launches Mobile Local Search With Microsoft; Ad Rev Share

The mobile search field is getting a major announcement a day these days: Sprint has gone with Microsoft as its mobile search engine, marking the software maker’s most significant step to gain a U.S. foothold in the nascent sector. Users can now use Microsoft’s Windows Live search bar at the top of Sprint’s menu page when they access the Web.
It seems to be limited though: The search engine can look for news, sports scores and ringtones within the carrier’s own mobile portal or search outside of Sprint’s network for local information such as nearby restaurants or movie theaters.
Sprint and Microsoft will share the revenue from advertisements placed alongside Windows Live search results and the two companies will work together to introduce new mobile phones services in the future.
WSJ: Businesses can bid to be listed as sponsored links in the local-search directory and will pay a fee when consumers click those links to call them through the service. Microsoft, which acquired Paris mobile search provider MotionBridge earlier this year, has powered Sprint’s multimedia-content search for several months. The Sprint service initially will require users to enter their location with a ZIP Code, address, or city and state. Later editions will allow users to give the carrier permission to track them by GPS.
Some other major mobile search deals: Google with Britain’s Vodafone and Japan’s KDDI; Medio with Verizon Wireless; Alltel with JumpTap; Cingular With InfoSpace; Helio With Yahoo

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