Redmond (WA) – Sun today said that it will use its Java platform to promote Microsoft’s Internet Explorer toolbar to the U.S.-based Internet users.  Sun already has a similar deal in place with Yahoo and Google, with the latter expiring soon.

Microsoft justified the Sun deal with the "need to provide more volume to advertisers," citing a survey that says 35% of all online searches are conducted from the browser's address line, built-in search boxes and add-on search toolbars.

While the deal may look significant at first sight, the effect may not be so dramatic. It is unlikely that this will be a game changer in the search business and it is even less likely to generate a big spike in search traffic volume for Microsoft. Its meaning may be much more symbolic.

The fact that Microsoft reached a search agreement with its once bitter rival, who received nearly $2 billion in a patent and antitrust settlement payout from Microsoft in 2004, could be perceived as a slap in Yahoo’s face. Yahoo may have tried to humiliate Microsoft with a Google deal, but the fortunes seem to have changed lately.

It seems to be clear that Microsoft is pursuing a strategy to build its search business with other resources than Yahoo, which means that could be increasingly under pressure to find new partners to sustain itself in a battle between Microsoft and Google.