Google Increases U.S. Search Market Share as Yahoo Slips, ComScore Says

Google Inc. (GOOG) widened its lead over Yahoo! Inc. in the U.S. Web-search market in October, according to researcher ComScore Inc. (SCOR)

Search share for Google rose to 65.6 percent last month from 65.3 percent in September, according to Reston, Virginia- based ComScore. Yahoo’s share slipped to 15.2 percent from 15.5 percent, while Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) added a tenth of a percentage point, garnering 14.8 percent of the U.S. market.

Google, which derives most of its revenue from query- result-based advertising, is trying to improve its search engine after rivals Yahoo and Microsoft signed a 10-year partnership to help them compete with the market leader. Google, building on upgrades completed last year, said earlier this month it is making results “fresher” by adding more recent links on some subjects. The new update affects about 35 percent of searches.

Microsoft and Yahoo together are expected to draw about 16 percent of spending on search-based advertising in the U.S. this year, according to EMarketer Inc. in New York. Mountain View, California-based Google is expected to grab about 76 percent, the research firm said.

Google shares fell 1.9 percent to $600.95 at the close in New York. Microsoft, based in Redmond, Washington, fell 3.5 percent to $26.20, and Sunnyvale, California-based Yahoo fell 0.3 percent to $15.92.

To contact the reporters on this story: Brian Womack in San Francisco at bwomack1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Tom Giles at tgiles5@bloomberg.net