T-Mobile announced that it selected as the default search provider for most of its devices Yahoo Inc’s services, giving it a significant boost in its battles with Google Inc and Microsoft Corp.

T-Mobile’s new web2go portal will be powered by Yahoo and will appear every time users will launch their mobile Web browsers. For now it is still unclear for how long the deal will be effective.

T-Mobile’s officials appear extremely satisfied with the partnership and expect the service to soon become highly popular. "We believe mobile Web access appeals to everyone, and web2go makes it easier than ever for customers to surf the Web from our broad lineup of phones," said Denny Marie Post, chief marketing officer, T-Mobile USA, who also added that "In addition to giving our customers the mobile Web, web2go provides a store front that will continue to grow with our customers, offering a range of products from the latest content to new innovative applications."

Using web2go, users will be able to create their own personalized home page, which will allow a fast access to all of their favorite Web sites. Customers will be able to visit any page available on the Internet, with the new service ensuring an easy navigation process. The web2go marketplace will be also available at no extra cost for the capable devices, and will let users search and purchase the newest games, wallpapers, ringtones, and also mobile optimized applications and services for their devices. Using the My Downloads feature, certain content, such as games and apps, purchased over time, will still be available even if users will upgrade to new devices.

Yahoo will promote sponsored links and will also display advertisements on each search results page. The revenue coming in from the ad campaigns will be shared by the two companies.

"We certainly will continue our relationship with Google," said Saj Sahay, T-Mobile's marketing director for handset innovation, but explained that Yahoo was the best suited for their lower-end phones, which dominate the mass market.

At this point, the Web2go feature is available across the majority of new T-Mobile phones, which includes most of the models released by Motorola, Nokia, Samsung, Sony Ericsson and BlackBerry. The enhancement is automatic for T-Mobile’s customers who own compatible phones. The company plans to make the service available on nearly all new T-Mobile phones over the next few months.

In addition to the release of web2go, T-Mobile also announced its new data plans, which are designed to offer customers more options depending on their needs and also simplify the experience. The new structure includes several options for Web, e-mail and messaging.

T-Mobile is one of the world’s biggest companies when it comes to mobile communications. It registers more than 127 million mobile customers, with close to 32 million only in the United States. The partnership is expected to ensure a good sales trend over the months to come, especially considering the fact that the holiday season is approaching and every single new feature or service, combined with a promotional offer, will attract new customers.