Yahoo Search Adds Reusable Images from Flickr, Hides the Fact that They're from Flickr

Flickr has long been one of the most neglected Yahoo acquisitions and, while it's not the phenomenon it used to be several years ago, it still has a loyal following.

Everyone's waiting to see what Marissa Mayer plans for Flickr, if anything; but, in the meantime, it's getting at least some attention by integrating Flickr results into Yahoo Image Search.

Specifically, Yahoo is making it possible to search for Flickr photos that have been shared under a Creative Commons license, meaning they are free to use by anyone, with some restrictions.

"Today, we’re making it easier than ever to find and share photos on the web and mobile devices," Yahoo announced.

"Using Yahoo! Image Search, you can now easily find photos from Flickr that are available for re-use or re-posting under Creative Commons terms," it added.

"Tens of millions of photos are now yours to search and share, courtesy of all the amazing photographers in the Flickr community," it explained.

The feature is available on the web, but also in the mobile version of the site. All you have to do is search for an image like you would always do. In the left sidebar, you'll now find the "Labeled for Reuse" filter.

If you want more specific reuse details, you'll have to go to the full image and find the "Attribution" link.

"Search neutrality"

Note that all the photos come from Flickr, owned by Yahoo, if you use the Labeled for Reuse filter. There's no notification that all the images are from Flickr or that Flickr is owned by Yahoo.

This when the EU wants to punish Google for integrating maps into search results while making it clear that they're from Google.

Yahoo's search share in the EU is minuscule, but Bing does the very same things Google does and nobody's complaining. It comes with the territory when you're large enough, but it shows just how qualified the people wanting to regulate search are.