Yahoo Go is on the move – a beta version of the mobile service is set to be introduced in 13 new countries, and Go 2.0 will be launch in the US on Friday. According to Yahoo, “[t]he Internet on the mobile phone will take another big step forward” thanks to these developments.
“With the tremendous consumer response to date we believe that Yahoo! Go will be a catalyst for broader adoption of the mobile Internet,” announced Marco Boerries, the executive vice president of Yahoo’s Connected Life Division, in a statement. “People want easy access to the Internet on their mobile phones, and Yahoo! Go 2.0 offers content, access and answers wherever you are.”
“Wherever you are” had better be, as of today, somewhere within American borders. Come Friday, that definition will expand to include the UK, Canada, Germany, Italy, Spain, France, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Vietnam, and Thailand – most of the places where Yahoo oneSearch already exists, in other words.
Both oneSearch and Go appear to be getting some serious support; Go 2.0 boasts a lot of improvements over the original beta version. It is “[f]aster than ever before,” according to Yahoo, with “substantially reduced loading time.” The service also offers “[e]ven better e-mail,” “[m]ore powerful maps,” and “[b]etter mobile search results.”
This does, of course, raise the question of why Yahoo is only introducing a beta version of Go in some countries. But Yahoo promises, “At launch the new beta versions for these countries will have much of the functionality as the US version,” and sources such as Tech Digest (a UK site) and Indiatimes Infotech seem excited, regardless.
