• eBrandz, Friday, April 4, 2008 12:30 PM

Yahoo announced major upgrades to its oneSearch mobile service this week, with the primary focus on voice-powered technology. OneSearch users can now speak their queries into the phone and get results that go beyond simple links. A search for "New York," for example, could return local subway schedules, while a search for "sushi restaurants" could turn up a list of geolocated eateries with open reservations. The new mobile search also takes advantage of Yahoo's Search Assist query suggestion tool.

OneSearch 2.0 is currently only available for BlackBerry users in the U.S., but Yahoo plans to expand the platform internationally and onto more than 500 devices by the end of 2008. The voice-search tech is powered by Cambridge, Mass.-based Vlingo, a two-year-old startup that Yahoo has invested some $20 million in. "We have obtained exclusive rights in a company that we believe will change voice search forever," said Marco Boerries, executive vice president of Yahoo's Connected Life Unit, in a statement at the CTIA show on Wednesday.

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