John Battelle's Searchblog

I am.

I am a fan of PhotoSynth. I hope Microsoft gets some traction with this. Brady's take here. My earlier coverage.

I find this tidbit, gleaned from coverage of SES, fascinating. Apparently Bill Gates is still engaged at Microsoft, at least on one issue: Search. From a piece covering the integration of Powerset into Microsoft's search index:

However the news isn’t all bleak, as Microsoft believes strongly in the potential advantages provided by Powerset. And they’ve got another ally, too: Bill Gate[s]. Scott Prevost, Powerset’s general manager, was quoted as saying that "Bill has definitely not retired for us". Gates, who has stepped down from day to day operations, has said that he planned to continue to work on search.

I wonder why this is so. Is it simply that Gates hates losing to the Google duo? Is it a legacy thing?

Love this. It says it all. Thanks to Philipp.

Andrew Chen (via Tim) has some really fun charts on "Web 2" apps here. Below, the graph for Twitter, one of the most interesting ones. Shows how strong it is in "early adopter" states but basically "dead" elsewhere.

Update: Turns out, this data is not exactly accurate - for more, see TC here.

Old news, but I am still behind: A post from Yahoo on early apps from their BOSS platform. These four examples are not particularly amazing, but point to what might be done with some more time and development...

Watch out, it might yet surprise us...

One of the news items I missed while I was away was the launch of Google's VC business. Not sure if anyone made the connection, but Google has already been in the VC biz, though in what might be called "very late stage": They invested $1 billion in AOL back in 2005, mainly to protect the distribution that AOL provided Google (and keep it from going to Microsoft or Yahoo).

At the time, I suggested that Time Warner spin AOL out and let it go public on its own. Since then, Time Warner has managed to, well, pretty much bleed AOL out.

Yesterday, however, Google acknowledged that the investment, on its own merits, was not quite working out.

Way back when, Larry Page thought it would be a cool idea to know what sites were linking back to any particular page you might be on while browsing the Internet.

In order to scratch that itch, he had to build a graph of the web. That graph became BackRub. But the product never became anything. Instead, he and Sergey realized that the index they had created was an excellent search engine.

That engine became Google.

But....I still want BackRub.

Really, wouldn't it be cool to know who was linking to any particular page you were on? Why isn't anyone making this available as widget? Anyone know of anybody doing it?

Slowly, too slowly, but surely, Google is letting the world see what it already knows.

This is not a surprise (Google told us this would happen in April). Google could not really own a SEO/SEM biz.

Publicis Groupe (EURONEXT Paris: FR0000130577) and Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) announced today that Publicis Groupe has agreed to acquire the Performics search marketing business (Performics) from Google. Chicago-based Performics, one of the leading search marketing services providers, helps to improve the performance of advertisers’ investments and maximize client campaign effectiveness. Its profit-driving suite of marketing solutions includes Performics’ reporting platform, local platform, advanced market expertise and active account management.

Wonder what happens with the anemic affiliate network they "launched" in June?

A month or so ago I sat down for a strategy briefing from Kevin Johnson, the then-president of Microsoft responsible for Windows and online services. I never did get around to writing what I thought of that meeting, partially due to a request from Microsoft PR that the session be on background.

I enjoyed my time with Kevin, but wondered a bit about whether his strategy, outlined somewhat in this Fortune piece, was going to be enough to sate Steve Ballmer's appetite for competing with Google.

Now we know. With Live Search, share has been lost, and with Yahoo, the deal is not closed. Here's the spin:

REDMOND, Wash. — July 23, 2008 — Microsoft Corp. today announced that the Platforms & Services Division (PSD) will be split into two groups: Windows/Windows Live and Online Services, with both groups reporting directly to CEO Steve Ballmer. Microsoft also announced that PSD President Kevin Johnson will be leaving the company. Johnson will work to ensure a smooth transition.

“Kevin has built a supremely talented organization and laid the foundation for the future success of Windows and our Online Services Business. This new structure will give us more agility and focus in two very competitive arenas,” Ballmer said. “It has been a pleasure to work with Kevin, and we wish him well in the future.”

Effective immediately, senior vice presidents Steven Sinofsky, Jon DeVaan and Bill Veghte will report directly to Ballmer to lead Windows/Windows Live. The Windows organization recently announced strong annual sales, with more than 180 million copies of Windows Vista sold globally, and it has driven more than 100 million installs of its Windows Live suite. The organization’s innovation pipeline includes a new version of Windows Internet Explorer, the next version of Windows and the next generation of the Windows Live product suite.

In the Online Services Business, Microsoft will create a new senior lead position and will conduct a search that will span internal and external candidates. In the meantime, Senior Vice President Satya Nadella will continue to lead Microsoft’s search, MSN and ad platform engineering efforts. Microsoft recently announced a strategy to redefine search through innovations in the user experience and business models. As an example, the company’s cashback search program, announced in May, is already generating strong momentum among online shoppers and advertisers.

In addition, Senior Vice President Brian McAndrews will continue to lead the Advertiser & Publisher Solutions Group (APS). APS has great momentum, having signed more than 100 new publisher deals in the past year. McAndrews will continue to focus on the display advertising opportunity for Microsoft, driving execution and integration of advertising assets, including recent acquisitions such as Massive Inc., Navic Networks, ScreenTonic SA and YaData Ltd.

“Our Windows business is firing on all cylinders,” Ballmer said. “We see tremendous opportunity in search and advertising, and we have a clear strategy for investing in success today and growth in the future.”

The headline in the Wall St. Journal.

Google Inc.'s second-quarter net income rose 35%, but the results disappointed investors and shares fell nearly 10% in after-hours trading.

Update: If you want snark, but worthy analysis, read SAI:

GEORGE REYES takes over. Grab the coffee.

AdSense DOWN sequentially. First time ever. Attributed to quality control, seasonality.
Paid clicks DOWN sequentially. Again, first time ever. Attributed to quality control, seasonality.

UK DOWN sequentially. No FOREX benefit, seasonal weakness. Again, first time ever.

Operating margin down sequentially.

Interest income down (some of the EPS miss here). Lower cash balance from DoubleClick deal, and lower yields.

Free cash flow again hammered by massive CAPEX: Up modestly sequentially, but has essentially been flat for 4 quarters.

HAL VARIAN:

Queries in many sectors weak: autos, real-estate, finance, etc. Real estate down year over year. Y/Y auto ad spend up, but not on financing side (consumers hit). Consumers cautious. This is the first time Google has acknowledged weakness. Revenue performance remarkable in light of this.

SERGEY:

Boring product details.

Said it here. Proof points piling up, see this and this:

Today our US Search Engine Performance Report: Q2 2008 was released. Analysis of data from our client index showed that Google took more than its fair share of the overall increase in search spending: for every new dollar spent on search in Q2 2008 versus Q2 2007, $1.10 went to Google. Yahoo lost $0.09, and Microsoft lost $0.01. In other words, advertisers are putting all of their new search dollars into Google, and pulling money out of Yahoo Search and Microsoft Live Search.

If I were at Google, I'd be more than a bit worried. Why? Because once you've vanquished your competition, then what?

Thanks to Lost Remote, I found this post from a fellow who found an interesting Google experiment in crowdsourced SERP personalization, what they call "Edit Search Results."

From the FAQ:

This feature allows you influence your search experience by adding, moving, and removing search results. When you search for the same keywords again while you are logged in to your Google account, you'll continue to see those changes. If you later want to revert your changes, you can undo any modifications you've made.

Note: This is an experimental feature served to a random selection of participants and may be available for only a few weeks.

This is probably one of the most important things that Twitter has done in its young history. Search is not good at Twitter, but Summize is a pretty good Twitter search service. It also could be a lot more. And there are many, many more things Twitter could do.

This is also the glimmerings of a business model for Twitter, in that the service needs attachment points of declared intent which may make sense for marketing. Search is certainly one.

I've been watching the developments over the past week, and honestly feel like it's a bad tennis match - back and forth, back and forth, but no aces, no amazing backhand winners.

Here's another volley from Microsoft today:

Microsoft Sets the Record Straight

REDMOND, Wash. – July 14, 2008 - On the evening of July 12, Yahoo! Inc. released a statement relating to recent discussions involving Yahoo!, Microsoft Corporation, and Carl Icahn. Microsoft believes the statement contains inaccuracies that need to be corrected. Among other things, the enhanced proposal for an alternate search transaction that we submitted late Friday was submitted at the request of Yahoo! Chairman Roy Bostock as a result of apparent attempts by Mr. Icahn to have Microsoft and Yahoo! engage on a search transaction on terms Mr. Icahn believed Microsoft would be willing to accept and which Microsoft understands Mr. Icahn had discussed with Yahoo!.

Specifically, on Thursday afternoon, July 10, Mr. Bostock called Steve Ballmer’s office to arrange a call. On that subsequent call, Mr. Bostock told Mr. Ballmer that “with substantial guarantees on the table and an increase in the TAC (traffic acquisition cost) rate, there are the pillars of a search only deal to be done.” Mr. Bostock encouraged Mr. Ballmer to submit a new proposal to Yahoo! for a search only deal reflecting these terms.

After considering Yahoo’s request and taking into account Yahoo’s previous feedback about our prior search proposal, Microsoft determined late Friday to propose an enhanced search transaction. This proposal included significant revenue guarantees, higher TAC rates, an equity investment and an option for Yahoo! to extend the agreement over a 10 year period.
Microsoft’s proposal did not include changes to Yahoo’s governance.

At the time Microsoft submitted its enhanced proposal, Microsoft asked that Yahoo! confirm whether it would agree that the enhancements were sufficient to form the basis for the parties to engage in negotiations over the weekend on a letter of intent and more detailed term sheets. This discussion has been mischaracterized as a take it or leave it ultimatum, rather than a timetable in order to move forward to intensive negotiations. Yahoo! informed Microsoft on Saturday that it had rejected the proposal.

I have a really long post in me about what Yahoo did last week - announcing Yahoo BOSS, the first step in a truly scaled, open search index. Well done, Yahoo. More to come.

I am thinking hard about the impact of open search - the idea that a major search index becomes totally open to developers, an open API, etc. that allows search to become a true platform that people can develop on top of.

I'd love your thoughts on this....writing this soon....I'll update here with more thoughts but wanted to leave this as bread on the waters for the early risers...I know, I know, spam, but that can be routed around with business models and contracts...I've been noodling this for a long time and am close to saying SOMETHING....more background here (on Yahoo's search monkey) and here (when Amazon did it and no one seemed to notice...)...

More here...