Yahoo!'s (YHOO) last stand -- handsets

Now that Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO) has lost its pole position as the leader of internet search on the PC, it is quickly moving its services to the handset market, hoping it is not too late. The announcement will be made at the Consumer Electronics Show.

According to The New York Times, "Yahoo is planning to announce that it has opened up some of its key mobile software and services to outside publishers and programmers in an effort to make Yahoo's own mobile offerings more useful to more people."

Unfortunately for the US portal company, Google (NASDAQ: GOOG), Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) and several handset companies are already working on similar projects. Cellular services providers also look to phone software and content to help them increase income beyond phone sales and voice service.

The Yahoo! announcement is a perfect example of the stretch many companies make around the Consumer Electronics Show. Each firm feels it has to make some significant announcement unless it wants to appear to be irrelevant. Yahoo!'s news is just a "me too" for mobile software services.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.