AOL's offering, currently in beta, lets users search the Internet on their mobile devices using any word or phrase, just as they would on the desktop.

To create the service, AOL partnered with Israeli technology firm InfoGin, whose mobile-transcoding and content-analysis capabilities adapt Web pages designed for the desktop to browser-enabled handhelds.

Reaching a New Audience

The competition for mobile search has heated up over the past several months. Search-engine giant Google recently introduced local services that deliver maps, directions and business listings to next-generation mobile phones and other wireless handhelds. In addition, Yahoo now offers a text-messaging feature that provides mobile users with direct responses to requests for information about local businesses, weather and stock prices.

The convenience of mobile devices makes them a target for search companies, said IDC analyst Alex Slawsby. "There has been a lot of talk about the omnipresence of these devices, and AOL, Google and Yahoo are seizing the opportunity to take their brand recognition and technology to a broader audience," he said.

The number of mobile devices with advanced HTML capabilities remains small, Slawsby noted, but localized information offerings have the potential to draw a large audience. Search providers now are moving away from text messaging and toward HTML as a way to deliver Web-based services to increasingly smarter mobile devices.

Opportunity for Carriers

AOL's offering is attractive because it is more actionable and useful for users than search services limited to earlier mobile technologies, said Yankee Group analyst Linda Barrabee. "They are taking a more holistic approach, including location, which significantly improves the search experience for mobile users."

AOL and its competitors have to extend their reach to the mobile environment as new devices and network capabilities are rolled out, said Barrabee. "And formatting pages for mobile devices is key, along with customized services such as Yellow Pages, because people want to find things near them while they are on the move."

For wireless carriers, enhanced search capabilities open up new revenue opportunities, including advertising dollars, as more and more customers take advantage of data services as well as voice, Barrabee said.