November 2005

Library Of Congress Announces World Digital Library Project Backed By Google
(November 22, 2005 - SearchDay)

The United States Library of Congress has announces today the creation of the World Digital Library, which has also received its first $3 million in funding from Google. The goal the project is to use public and private money to develop a virtual library giving anyone access to the world's "rare and unique cultural materials". Google is only the first of what's hoped to be many donors. Danny Sullivan and Gary Price explore this further in their article.

Online Holiday Sales Expected to Hit the $19 Billion Mark
(November 18, 2005 - Search Engine Guide)

In a recent study released by comScore, they estimate online holiday sales for non-travel purchases to rack up more than $19 billion in sales during the last two months of this year. That figure would mean a 24% growth over this time last year.

Study: Search engine use on the rise
(November 21, 2005 - CNN)

The number of people who use Internet search engines to find information has jumped over the last year, claiming a solid No. 2 spot behind e-mail among online tasks, a new study finds.

Of the 94 million American adults who went online on a given autumn day this year, 63 percent used a search engine, compared with 56 percent in June 2004, the Pew Internet and American Life Project said Sunday.

Google Base is Now Live and Accepting Content
(November 16, 2005 - SearchDay)

Google Base is now live for anyone to play with and provides a new way for people to submit content to Google. Will this end up being an eBay, Monster, Craig's List and others killer? Only time will tell. This new service from Google allows you to post just about anything - recipes, car ads, services, events, etc. The service is free but you must have a Google account to post.

Google Now Offers Urchin (Web Analytics) For Free
(November 14, 2005 - News.com)

Google will launch a free Web analytics service that will let companies see exactly how visitors interact with their Web site and how their advertising campaigns are faring. The free hosted service which will be called Google Analytics, is based on technology from Urchin, a web analytics program that Google acquired in March. This is most likely unwelcomed news to the variety of web analytic firms of which this is their core living.

Amazon Obtains Patents on Consumer Reviews
(November 11, 2005 - InternetNews.com)

Customer reviews are a hot new content area, being used by Google, Yahoo and MSN to spice up local search results. However as of Thursday, such consumer reviews could put search providers, as well as thousands of e-commerce sites, review sites and online booksellers, in the sights of Amazon.com's lawyers.

Google Personalized Search Goes Live
(November 10, 2005 - SearchDay)

Google's personalized search which reorders search results based on your past search behavior, giving more weight to topics that interest you, is now available to users on 38 Google domains in addition to Google.com.

Yahoo Backs Out of Bidding War for Piece of AOL
(November 10, 2005 - News.com)

Yahoo has backed out of the running to buy a stake in Time Warner's America Online Internet unit leaving Google and MSN to duke it out. "After we learned what their proposed deal terms were, we passed and we've never looked back," a Yahoo spokeswoman said on Thursday, confirming a report in the Wall Street Journal.

Public Relations & Reputation Management on the Search Engines
(November 8, 2005 - SearchDay)

According to a panel of experts at the recent Search Engine Strategies conference in San Jose, search marketing should go beyond traditional search engine optimization and paid links by bolstering a firm's reputation and customer image. This article recaps that session.

Google Local Now Available for Mobile
(November 7, 2005 - SearchDay)

Google releases a a stripped-down version of the web-based Google Local that puts a heavy emphasis on maps and driving directions.

Amazon & Random House Throw the Book at Google
(November 4, 2005 - News.com)

As Google recently put thousands of public domain books online, Amazon responded by announcing plans to allow people to read books on the Web. In a similar move, Random House, the world's largest publisher of trade books, said it had come up with a business model for allowing people to pay to view its books on the Internet as well.

Yahoo Enhances Maps, Integrates Local Search
(November 3, 2005 - SearchDay)

In a major overhaul, Yahoo has significantly upgraded its Maps offering with cleaner maps and integrated local search results. They have enhanced the functionality of their map offering by integrating local search capabilities and results into the mix. Larger maps are also featured with more "wow" factors.

Microsoft to Offer Ad Supported Online Software
(November 2, 2005 - MediaWeek)

In a move that is sure to be seen as a direct response to Google's new partnership with Sun's OpenOffice, Microsoft announced that they would be offering up online versions of some Windows software products including their popular MS Office applications. These new services will be supported by advertising that will be sold through MSN adCenter.

Google Base: AdWords For The Rest Of Us
(November 1, 2005 - SearchInsider)

When Google Base finally lands, it will make a crater in the online space upon arrival. With a single new release, Google could find itself competing with the likes of web properties Craigslist, eBay, Monster, Amazon, and even FoodNetwork.com.