Google Execs: Twitter-like Functionality Could Be Added to Search
While taking questions yesterday about alleged violation of anti-trust laws, Google execs including CEO Eric Schmidt reportedly told press that the company is, in the words of Reuters scribe Alexei Oreskovic, "looking at ... ways of integrating microblogging capabilities, such as those popularized by Twitter, into its search product."
That's news to us. Everything these days is about Twitter, though. Go to a party--talk about Twitter. Have a blog? Talk about Twitter. Use Twitter? Talk about Twitter. Apparently we can add to that: facing legal pressure over allegedly anti-competitive business practices? Talk about Twitter. There's absolutely no more information available about this - but below are three possible scenarios we can imagine for Google integrating microblogging into its search product.
The fact that Schmidt said what he did is just one reason to believe Google is going to do something with microblogging. There are several - most important is the fact that status sharing and activity streams are really useful, compelling and potentially valuable for both users and companies that dabble in them. Here's how it might go down.
Real Time Search
The most logical integration of microblogging and search would be microblogging search. Google already indexes Twitter messages, in some ways better than Twitter does. We can imagine "real time" being an option just like web, news, images and blogs on Google search. Here at ReadWriteWeb we use this tool to have that experience already. There is a whole lot that can be done with something like Twitter search if the user accounts tweeting the twits and twats are taken into account. Check out the nascent awesomeness at Twazzup, for example.
This probably isn't going to happen, though, as long as Twitter is the only microblogging game in town. There just isn't a meaningful data set of publicly available status updates elsewhere. Facebook status messages would be great to search but that would contradict the fundamental nature of the site - and Microsoft has a lot of skin in the game there.
We're hoping that open source microblogging technology from Laconi.ca will spread throughout the land and give engines something other than Twitter to search.
Augmenting Pagerank
Inbound links are the primary way that Google determines what's a good page to serve up for any search query. Fresh links from the micro-blogo-o-sphere could well augment the traditional metric with some timeliness.
This is something we explored yesterday in a post about Twitter and how it is not going to index the pages you share links to. It's going to have 3rd party companies perform that function and maybe buy one or more of them.
We don't think Google is going to integrate microblogging in this way though. Why not? Because it would be silly. Google is already fast enough, good enough and doggone it - people like it.
What Are You Doing?
You know what's most likely? That Google will add the equivelant of "what are you doing?" to its search interface. Perhaps "what are you searching for?" Messages posted and available to read through that interface will be to and from your Google Contacts. (That's the people you Gmail with, basically.) Google is making a big push for people to take their Google Profiles more seriously and one consequence of that could be a well populated social graph for users.
Friends could help answer the questions you're asking of Google or they could let you know what they are doing, like a home town version of Google News. If you check out Google Friend Connect, imagining that integrated into search isn't hard at all.
Social search and status sharing. It's a lot less crazy than Google's search wiki.
The paradigm of status sharing and activity streams is just too compelling for Google to stay out of it. Maybe they will buy FriendFeed. Maybe they will build something themselves and maybe it will be good.
Schmidt's hint yesterday only makes sense, though. How can you imagine the integration of microblogging into search looking?
The Schmidt story was found in Brad Williamson's excellent FriendFeed group Media News and Analysis - thanks Brad!
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Duh. I was wondering how long this would take. It reminded me as I just saw @pistachio's talk to the folks at Google about Twitter being a Google killer.
Posted by: Jim Turner
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May 8, 2009 11:08 AM
Google already has far too much power. They have a virtual monopoly on search and paid search. They can destroy any business they choose now and no doubt will continue to absorb any potential competition they can. Google is the Beast and the Borg.
What we really need are independent Social Networking sites and search engines that operate outside Google's sphere of influence and do not rely on their resources. Doing it now would be far easier than doing it later.
Jim, would love to see that talk if there's video available!
@Internet Strategist, I think that is a very intelligent comment. Thanks for posting it.
Great post, Marshall! For those of use immersed in all things Twitter and interested in all things search-related, these are heady times indeed.
I, for one, can't wait for the shake-up (and shake-out?) that real-time search will provide. Once everyone gets in the game, it will be that much easier for all of us to find what we're looking for.
Of course, it will also provide new challenges and opportunities for marketers. But it should ultimately help us to get info just to people who care about it instead of having to follow the old campaign models where half (or more) of your marketing dollars were wasted.
@CarriBugbee
here it is.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JRgS-Kmtr20
i listened to half of it while working last week. i think there is a huge disparity in how people see twitter, if you have tons of followers and can ask almost any question and get decent answers that has to color your view of the utility of the service. the speaker acknowledges that she's coming from that perspective...
anyway, enjoy.
Testing facebook connect....囧
Eric Schmidt fantasized about this topic before. See him at the NAA.
- Eric Schmidt - Speech at the Newspaper Association of America
watch minute 31:
Eric Schmidt talks about Real Time Content and Mood Mapping
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orAJ-YD9FhA&fmt=18
I hope my transcription of the Eric Schmidt talk is quite right, because I'm German.
Eric Schmidt speaks at the Newspaper Association of America on April 7, 2009 in San Diego.
beginning at minute 31
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orAJ-YD9FhA&fmt=18
(...) Right there in the local context. (...) When we are at movie theaters, we are all tweeting or twittering to each other. (...) This is going to happen. Because of this notion in being in a shared community. (...) Why don't we have mood mapping? (...) Everybody sort of tweets... well I don't like it, or I do like it. (...) We could do it in real time! This is the year, when real time gets added to the equation that we are all dealing with now. It's now all becoming real time. It is that sum, that defines both the problem and the opportunity, that all of us see. (...) and real time content (...) From our perspective, we need those voices.
i've been thinking that micro-messaging/status updates via google should just be added right into the gmail compose UI.
i have gmail open all day. they could easily integrate other messaging services right there.
Nice work, konterkariert! Thanks!
Wow. That comic literally brought a tear to my eye. I recently wrote about why journalists/bloggers obsessively write about Twitter to create an "echo chamber" (like lead gen for visitors) at http://www.glennfriesen.com/why-tech-journalists-and-bloggers-write-about-twitter. I gotta write a follow up post now to reference this article... wow. that comic is so accurate!
I really like Michael's thought about microblogging from gmail. Why not just permalink a person's status message from gchat? That was the foundation of Twitter in the first place, no?
Glenn, Michael, that Gmail idea sounds like a cool one to me too.
I think twitter is not ready to be bought by Google and this frustration is the result of this remark.
I guess that everyone knew that Google should do something after Twitter introduced their fresh search service that Google current search engine is not capable of providing.
People even wondered if Twitter poses a real threat to Google and a lot were speculating about a potential purchase. I, myself, projected that Google can easily incorporate a live-streaming search funcionality in their search pages. They already started their social network (friends connect) and can easily provide both options.
Maybe it is really time for Google to start tweeting, no? (http://blog.thoughtpick.com/2009/03/is-it-time-for-google-to-start-tweeting.html)
The greatest benefit of Facebook is that it has many groups on the site that you can join. So if you are interested in Chicago Cubs you can research Chicago Cubs in the groups section and you will be able to find friends on there that like the Cubs. This is just one example, I know that you can join groups of your favorite football team, television show, or whatever you want for the most part! If you can't find a group for your interest, you can simply create one!
James
http://EmailCharger.com
I like the idea of adding a what are you searching for functionality to Google. Would certainly be a great way to get insight from your contacts about info you're trying to find.
well I've installed a lot of the twitter scripts you suggested, and my firebox rocks with Twitter searches top of my Google Searches.
Posted by: PaulSweeney
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May 9, 2009 3:05 PM
Equivelant? :|
Google could have done so much more with it's aqusition of Jaiku (jaiku.com) It had threaded comments, and was much better to use... It even had an S60 mobile app, had a wonderful m.jaiku.com site, and was easier to follow...
I've heard it talked about as Twitter is like yelling out the window to strangers, and Jaiku was like walking up to those same strangers to start a conversation...
I suggest everyone go check it out, and hopefully Google will put more effort into it!
aaah, after 5 revisions, here's the headline I wanted. Google CEO: Twitter-like Functionality Could Be Added to Search http://bit.ly/qW7Kj [from http://twitter.com/marshallk/statuses/1740106436]
Posted by: Marshall Kirkpatrick
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May 24, 2009 10:50 AM
i gust want to say some thing "great job"
Update your Twitter randomly according to your intrest Or, from Rss Feed Or, from your own tweet message list Or, Any combination of the above three http://feedmytwitter.com
I love you google :) Thank you for this post
search search search , again search again again... :) Google must rest :)