Yahoo Japan goes with Google

THE MOST POPULAR Internet search outfit in Japan has decided to use Google's search technology, ignoring the fact that its part-owner Yahoo is partnered up with Microsoft.

Yahoo Japan said it will switch to Google's search engine from one previously developed by Yahoo and will also pick up Google's online advertising system.

The Yahoo and Microsoft deal did not reach to Japan, so it had a number of alternatives from which to choose. As Yahoo Japan's majority shareholder is the Japanese ISP Softbank, it was not bound to Yahoo's obvious search engine preference for Microsoft's Bing.

But Japanese users aren't likely to see Google labels on what they see and interact with. Although Google will control the back-end technology, the front end interface that users see will still be a Yahoo website.

In a translated blog post, Daniel Alegre, Google's VP for Asia Pacific and Japan wrote, "Both companies are independent operators as far as deploying search services and advertising services without sharing information about customers and prices. We will continue to be actively competing in the Japanese market."

He said that he hoped that innovation in advertising and search will be spurred on by the partnership, but not lead to conflict involving other companies.

He added, "Ultimately we hope to bring about better services for users and partners." µ