Samsung to preload Yahoo services on millions of handsets

Yahoo and Samsung have signed a pact that will see the search provider's services preloaded on the electronic-maker's mobile handsets. The new arrangement adds to a deal made in 2007 and comes as Samsung attempts to compete with Apple and Google.

The deal will greatly expand Yahoo's presence on Samsung's cell phones, as a wide variety of Yahoo's services will be bundled with Samsung-branded devices, including Yahoo Mail, Messenger, Front Page, Search, Flickr, News, Finance, Contacts, Calendar, and Weather. The agreement should be effective next month and includes phones running Samsung's Bada platform, and interestingly, Google's Android operating system.

This contract follows shortly after Verizon switched to Microsoft's Bing for its native search engine provider on Blackberry handsets, essentially snubbing Google. Also, AT&T recently dropped Google search from the Android-powered Backflip, replacing it with Yahoo.