Yahoo! Announces Plans to Release Android Internet Browser in Japan

By Vincent Funaro, Christian Post Reporter Friday, May 04, 2012

Yahoo! announced its plans to launch its very own Internet Browser on Android in Japan that will be called "Yahoo Browser."

Unlike its status in the U.S., Yahoo! is still the number one search engine in Japan and the company hopes to steal some fire from the built-in browser in the Android system.

Yahoo!'s new browser functions differently from other versions as it includes a Speed Dial feature that allows users to reach their most visited website along with websites they pre-choose.

The browser features a URL bar and a search box in the main interface that searches directly to Yahoo! It also offers a semicircular menu seen before on other browsers that appears when the user touches either side edge of the screen.

Yahoo!'s browser also features a widget on the device's home screen, voice recognition, and a read-it-later option that allows users to clip a webpage and return to it later on.

"This might be Yahoo! Japan's genius little way of trying to steal a few ad dollars from Google- specifically in Japan," said 9to5 Google. "Some of you might not know that Google makes its money from Android from searches made on the device when users click on ads in the Google homepage (if the default Google search engine is used)."

Yahoo! can steal some revenue by making the Japanese use the new browser, which defaults to Yahoo search and it would make them click on Yahoo's ads rather than Google's.

"Of course I don't think this alone will dramatically hurt Google, but it is definitely an interesting approach on Yahoo's part," said 9to5 Google. "Yahoo also makes an Android app store available in Japan, a country where 60 percent of new phone purchases are Android."