AT&T and Yahoo will share revenue from advertising on mobile phones and personal computers, according to a deal announced this week. Financial terms were not disclosed, but the multi-year deal
expands an alliance the companies formed in 2001.
Yahoo will provide search and display advertising for AT&T customers on mobile devices and PCs. As part of the deal, the search
engine will create a new look and feel for the carrier's Web portal.
The agreement also creates new advertising-based revenue opportunities for both companies from search and display
capabilities from either a mobile handset or a PC.
AT&T spokesperson Jenny Parker says that while the agreement paves the way for an "even richer and more innovative online experience for
consumers, it also reflects the changes in the marketplace where search, advertising and mobile have become increasingly important growth areas."
Consumers benefit too, Parker says. The new
att.net portal will allow AT&T wireless customers--even those who don't subscribe to the carrier's Internet service plan--to establish att.net e-mail addresses. All of AT&T's 14.2 million broadband
customers will gain access to co-branded versions of Yahoo's mobile Web properties and the Yahoo! Go application.
Yahoo also will become AT&T's provider for search and display on both mobile
devices and the PC. Yellowpages.com becomes the lead local search engine on both screens, as well.
As for AT&T U-verse TV customers, they will continue to have access to Yahoo content through
the service's interactive AT&T U-bar feature, where available. The AT&T U-bar enables subscribers to view stock quotes, weather forecasts, traffic information, and sports scores on their TV screens
in an area below the program they're currently watching, without interrupting their program. While this feature provides Yahoo content to U-verse subscribers, it does not provide opportunities for
marketers.