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Comment by dec0dedab0de | Hacker News Reader

The real question is did Google stop paying? did Yahoo offer way more? Or did Mozilla want to break out from Google's shadow?

Edit: I mean to say did Google decide to end it, or did Mozilla, and why?

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All of the potential partnerships (including going with Google again) offered an improvement economically over the last deal partnership.

Mozilla chose not to go with Google again.

There was a strong option in place from Google, but Mozilla decided not to go with them as a global default in order to promote choice.

I don't think I follow this argument. Can you explain it further? It feels like Yahoo probably just offered more money.

Google currently has the overwhelming share of the search market, which means a large advertising income. If other players get a bigger chunk of the pie, that means more competition.

Both Google and Yahoo offered options with strong, economic terms. But it came down to a decision of values, and where Mozilla wanted to see the Internet in the future (again, full of choice, diversification, and healthy competition). What happens next is anyone's guess.

https://blog.mozilla.org/blog/2014/11/19/promoting-choice-an...

Google has been the Firefox global search default since 2004. Our agreement came up for renewal this year, and we took this as an opportunity to review our competitive strategy and explore our options.

In evaluating our search partnerships, our primary consideration was to ensure our strategy aligned with our values of choice and independence, and positions us to innovate and advance our mission in ways that best serve our users and the Web. In the end, each of the partnership options available to us had strong, improved economic terms reflecting the significant value that Firefox brings to the ecosystem. But one strategy stood out from the rest.

Compared to the previous deal (where Google was the global default), the new deal also leaves Mozilla more free to pursue different partnerships worldwide. For example, Yandex is now the default Firefox search engine in Russia (as it was three years ago, before the global Google deal).

You mean Yandex in Russia. Baidu is China :)

Fixed, thanks.

If Mozilla wanted to promote choice, why not present the user with an option of some sort? I fail to see how picking s default provider counts as "choice".

We do and have offered the ability to choose your search provider freely for years, and that is not going to change.

But the choice isn't by default. Users must go explicitly choose. If Mozilla wanted to "promote choice", they'd prompt the user to pick a search engine on first use. Or use a default and make noise about changing. Like how FF reminds you about your rights, or asks to join customer feedback program.

I don't see how Yahoo promotes choice over Google, unless by choice you mean promote competition by going against the market leader. Which is fine, and I dislike Google, so good on y'all. But I don't get the point if euphemisms.

Mozilla was the one who decided not to renew.

Mozilla's deal with Google ran it's course. Instead of inking a new deal with Google, Mozilla decided to go with another option.

Yup, they didn't renew the google contract

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