Verizon, Google nearing mobile search deal

Google may soon be the default search provider on Verizon mobile devices, according to this report in the Wall St. Journal. If it works out, Verizon users will have a one-stop shop--Google--where they can search for ringtones, restaurants and Web pages. The potential pact is surprising, not only because it reportedly gives Google a share of the ad revenue tied to Verizon user searches, but because it will mark one of the few times Verizon and Google have played nicely together.

Apparently still smarting from Google's support of regulations requiring carriers like Verizon to open up their networks to more services and handsets, Verizon is notably the only major U.S. carrier not gunning to carry phones outfitted with Android, Google's mobile phone OS. The search deal, which promises to be lucrative for both parties, is a sign the relationship may be thawing a bit.

Eventually, Verizon will put Google's search bar on its phones' home screen, and could later extend the agreement to cover Verizon's Web portal and FIOS TV service. The deal is not yet finalized, however, and one sticking point is Google's interest in saving information from user cellphone searches. Usually, carriers don't like to give such lucrative data away.

If the deal gets struck, however, it won't just be good for the vendors. Verizon is the No. 2 wireless carrier in the country, and Google is far and away the No. 1 Web search provider. Such synergies promise a far more streamlined search tool on a high-coverage mobile network--and in the end, it means users win too.