Friday, 21 July 2006

NTT DoCoMo Adds Search Option for i-mode

NTT DoCoMo and its eight regional subsidiaries has announced that users will be able to perform keyword searches from the top page of the Japanese iMenu portal for convenient access to official i-mode sites.

In addition, the search results page will provide links to nine search engines so users can view non-official i-mode sites and other websites with the same keyword.

The keyword searches will be free for all i-mode users, excluding packet communication charges for accessing sites. No special set-up is required, and the search box will be automatically displayed from the service launch.

The new searches to be made available in October, said NTT DoCoMo, will make searching easier and faster as well as provide access to a broad array of information from websites other than i-mode.

It has link with domestic search engines including Microsoft Corp.'s MSN, Rakuten Inc.'s Infoseek Mobile, Livedoor Co. Ltd.'s Livedoor Mobile, NTT Resonant Inc.'s Goo and several smaller services.