Google search slipping in U.S. market share

Google's grip on the Web search market continued to weaken in January, as rival Yahoo makes big gains following a partnership with Mozilla web browser Firefox.

According to research firm StatCounter, Google search commanded a 74.8% market share, well ahead of competitors. However, StatCounter notes it's the first time Google's share dipped below 75% since it first started tracking data in 2008.

Microsoft's Bing finished second with 12.4%, followed by Yahoo at 10.9%.

When focusing solely on Firefox users, Yahoo's surge in the search market looks more impressive. StatCounter finds Yahoo soared from 9.9% market share in December to over 28% last month. Meanwhile, Google's share sunk from nearly 82% to 63.9%.

In November, Yahoo and Mozilla announced a five-year partnership where Yahoo would become the default search option on Firefox web browsers. The switch took effect in December.

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