Transcript

Tuesday May 27, 2008

Microsoft Abandons Live Book Search And Live Search Academic Efforts

Microsoft has announced its decision to abandon its effort to digitize books and archive academic journals to make their contents searchable online; Noting that the decision to forgo the effort was made because it does not align with Microsoft’s plan for its search strategy. Microsoft will cancel two separate sites including Live Search Books and Live Search Academic project. Microsoft entered the book scanning business in 2005 by contributing to the Open Content Alliance and in 2006, it launched its own competing MSN book search site which now boasts digital copies of 750,000 books and 80 million journal articles. Microsoft will shift focus to a new business model with regards to its search strategy, which will cater to users who have high commercial intent, according to the company. Microsoft most recently announced its Live Search cashback program, in which Microsoft is offering cash back on the purchase of products from Microsoft advertisers found through its Live Search service.

http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D90RLORG0.htm
http://machinist.salon.com/blog/2008/05/23/microsoft_books_search/index.html
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/products/2008-05-25-microsoft-book-scanning_N.htm
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20080526-why-killing-live-book-search-is-the-right-thing-for-ms.html
http://www.webware.com/8301-1_109-9951460-2.html
http://blogs.msdn.com/livesearch/archive/2008/05/23/book-search-winding-down.aspx
http://googlewatch.eweek.com/content/google_vs_microsoft/microsoft_expels_book_search_can_google_put_school_back_in_session.html
http://www.latimes.com/technology/la-fi-books24-2008may24,0,5734908.story
http://techblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2008/05/microsoft-abandons-book-scanni.html
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24819964/
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/24/technology/24soft.html
http://www.webmasterworld.com/msft/3658014.htm

4INFO Partners With Yahoo

Silicon Valley start-up 4INFO, which is active in the area of text message advertising, plans to announce a new trial partnership with Yahoo in which 4INFO will provide the technology for Yahoo to publish its content, such as news updates, horoscopes, sports scores and weather forecasts, via text messages that also contain a small advertisement. Consumers sign up online to receive the alerts. The move is aimed at reaching consumers through mobile message advertising, which is expected to reach $1.5 billion by 2008, up 82% from last year, according to research firm eMarketer. Spending on mobile-message advertising now accounts for about 88% of the total $1.7 billion spent on mobile ads, which also includes search ads and display ads.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121185056833021519.html?mod=2_1571_leftbox
http://4info.net/

[edited by: Vanessa_Zamora at 9:57 pm (utc) on May 27, 2008]