Is Google’s dominance on the mobile web a foregone conclusion? That was the question being raised time and time again at the Visiongain Mobile Search Conference yesterday in London. With the mobile web still in its infancy, the debate is on whether Google’s overwhelming dominance on the wired internet will translate to mobile devices or whether other players—including operators, handset manufacturers, and even small search startups—have a chance.

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Google, of course, has the undeniable popularity of its brand going for it. Market researcher Millward Brown Optimor named the search giant the most powerful global brand of 2007, with a “brand value” worth $66.4 billion. As Martin Harris, SVP of worldwide sales at mobile content platform firm Bango (AIM: BGO) noted at the conference, “Once you see Google [on your mobile device] you don’t forget about it.” The simple fact is that for many consumers, search means Google (NSDQ: GOOG).

But on the nascent mobile web, search is currently a frustrating experience, even when using Google. Getting relevant results can often be a hit or miss experience. Plus, the dearth of mobile specific content means that many of the results are pulled from the wired internet that are transcoded to appear on mobile devices. The pages often appear cluttered and chopped up—not the ideal user experience. Indeed, while Google may have innovated the wired internet with its page ranking algorithm, some conference participants thought that the search giant was now acting the role of the “incumbent”, and resting on its prior success.