Google Inc. has made its biggest move yet on the U.S. mobile Web market by signing a deal with Sprint Nextel Corp. that positions the Internet company to build services to run on Sprint's planned WiMAX high-speed wireless network.
The two companies said Thursday (July 26) that Google will provide its Internet search service for a Web portal that Sprint is developing for the new WiMAX network. The gateway to various Web services will be ready in April 2008.
The deal is Google's closest alliance with a major U.S. mobile service provider.
While Google is the world's leading provider of Web search and has agreements with large mobile providers in Asia and Europe, analysts say it has lagged Yahoo Inc. in the U.S. wireless market.
