Microsoft"s current arrangement with Yahoo that puts the Bing search engine inside Yahoo"s website might be coming to an end, according to a new report. It claims that Yahoo is in discussions with Facebook that could lead to a search deal between the two companies.
The Telegraph reports, via unnamed sources, that Yahoo"s new CEO Marissa Mayer has been talking privately with Facebook"s chief operating office Sheryl Sandberg. The article says the talks could lead to Yahoo and Facebook teaming up to create a new search engine rival to Google and Microsoft"s Bing.
Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg has hinted strongly in recent months that the company is developing its own search technology. In a recent interview he is quoted as saying, "Facebook is pretty uniquely positioned to answer the questions people have. At some point we’ll do it. We have a team working on it."
Microsoft and Yahoo signed a 10 year deal in 2009 that put the Bing search engine as the basis for Yahoo"s search results. The deal has allowed Bing to slowly take away some of Google"s search market share. However, that was well before Mayer, who previously was a top executive at Google, came to Yahoo as its new CEO.
Source: The Telegraph
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