Earlier this week, Google and Mozilla confirmed that the two companies had signed a new agreement that would keep Google"s search engine as the default search site for Mozilla"s Firefox web browser for the next three years. The two companies didn"t disclose the financial details of the deal. Today, AllThingsD.com reports via unnamed sources that Mozilla will be getting a lot of money for the deal and it has Microsoft and Yahoo to thank for that, sort of.
The report claims that the new Google-Firefox agreement will pay Mozilla just below $300 million a year for the next three years. That number is described as a big jump from the previous deal. Mozilla said earlier this year Google was responsible for 84 percent of Mozilla"s revenue stream in 2010, which came in at $123 million.
Both Microsoft and Yahoo were reportedly trying to secure the Firefox default search spot as well but it looks like Google, which has its own Chrome browser, was willing to pony up the big bucks for that coveted virtual real estate. Even though Firefox has lost some market share in the web browser space to Chrome, it remains one of the most popular free software programs in the world.