UPDATED 06:15 EDT / NOVEMBER 26 2015

NEWS

Mozilla insists its no longer dependent on Google for cash

The Mozilla Foundation has publicly boasted that it’s no longer dependent on Google for the bulk of its revenues, and that it hopes to make even more cash from its new search deals with companies like Yahoo! Inc., Yandex and Baidu Inc.

For years, the maker of the Firefox browser and other open-source software generated the bulk of its income from a deal with Google, which paid handsomely to be the default search engine on Firefox. But that contract came to an end last year, and while it reaped the non-profit $330 million in revenues in 2014, it was widely reported at the time Google was looking to pay substantially less to renew the deal.

As a result, Mozilla decided in 2015 to turn to other search engines. That led to Yahoo becoming the default search provider in the U.S., Yandex taking over in Russia, and Baidu being given prominence in China. As for Google, it’s still the default in Europe, but Mozilla no longer profits from that arrangement, said Mozilla’s chief business and legal officer Denelle Dixon-Thayer in a statement to CNet.

Many were worried that Mozilla’s decision to cancel its relationship with Google would have an adverse impact on its revenues, but Mozilla CFO Jim Cook told CNet that the numbers for 2015 should look even better.

“We really look forward to displaying our results next year,” said Cook. “2015 will show our continued track record of really strong financial results.”

Many people are convinced that it’s important for Mozilla to continue enjoying success, because it’s one of the only major tech organization that’s committed to delivering an open and unbiased Web experience.

Despite its confidence, there are concerns that Mozilla’s revenues could slip as its Firefox browser grows less and less relevant. Firefox is responsible for more than 90 percent of Mozilla’s revenues, but the browser has slowly but surely been losing market share for years. Its share across desktops, mobiles and tablets shrunk from 17.04 percent to just 15.33 percent from October 2014 to October 2015 according to StatCounter, and it’s not clear if that trend can be reversed.

Part of the problem is the shift to mobile computing, an area where Mozilla has really struggled to make its presence felt. The Firefox browser for Android has been around for quite some time but has barely made an impact, and the recently launched iOS version is probably too little, too late.

Mozilla knows it’s struggling in mobile, which is why it launched its own Firefox OS for smartphones in 2014, targeting developing markets with low-cost handsets. Unfortunately the strategy hasn’t really succeeded, and it remains to be seen if the non-profit will ever be able to gain traction in the highly competitive mobile space.

Image credit: geralt via pixabay.com

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