Yahoo! search market share falls due to browser toolbar partnerships

In fact, estimates are that Yahoo! might lose up to 15% of its internet search market share over the next year to 18 months due to its failure to renew the search toolbar deals with the largest and third-largest PC makers in the world, according to the Wall Street Journal (subscription required). With Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) taking its global internet search market share in March to 64%, Yahoo! will slip further behind now, and it could lose up to 3% of its U.S. internet search market share as well.

Can Yahoo! ever compete with Google in internet search? It's still no slouch, with just a bit over 20% of the share. Still, staying at that level is critical for Yahoo!'s success in search if it doesn't want Google to take even more market share than it already has.

With Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) in a distant third place at 8%, will the time arise again where the two competitors join up to try and take on Google in search in a combined fashion? That sure didn't work in 2008. Would it work now? The world has changed since then, and with Yahoo! shares teetering at just over $13 per share, the time may be ripe for another go-round at a merger.