Yahoo, which currently uses Bing search technology to power its search engine, is looking out for an alternative and may break up its “Search Alliance” with Microsoft, new reports have claimed.
According to a report published by Re/Code on Friday, “Fast Break” and “Curveball” are the two new internal projects that the internet giant is currently working on with the aim of developing a search engine of its own. It is not yet clear however what “Fast Break” and “Curveball” actually are.
Microsoft guaranteed to pay Yahoo a certain amount of its revenue per search on its properties for 18 months under an agreement effective from February 2010. The sum was a compensation, which was paid to Yahoo for using Microsoft’s Bing search technology for its sites. However, Microsoft failed to fulfill its commitment.
Last year in April, Yahoo and Microsoft decided to extend the agreement for another one year, but only in the United States. The deal will come to an end on April 1, 2014, the same time Yahoo’s “Fast Break” and “Curveball” projects are scheduled to be completed.
Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer said during the recent earnings call “We’re long in search and we do intend to continue to invest in the search user experience and in really making sure that Yahoo users on the network ultimately, really gather tremendous experience”.
According to report, the internal projects are geared towards the primary question of when can the search partnership between Microsoft and Yahoo end and not whether it will end. Re/Code’s sources further claim that the aggressive timeline will eventually result into a full-fledged search engine.
It seems like Yahoo’s full-fledged search engine may finally be on its way.
