Category: Of Note in Search Biz

The release is here, from it:

Yahoo! Inc., a leading global Internet company, today announced the Yahoo! Search Marketing Commercial API Program, which provides businesses and developers of all sizes free, open access to the “Panama” search marketing application program interfaces (APIs). Through this program, advertisers, developers and commercial partners including ad agencies and technology providers can easily build upon Yahoo!’s core search marketing technologies to enhance their existing business offerings or create brand new search marketing tools and applications. In addition, the program provides a range of value-added services to help commercial partners gain greater insight into Yahoo!’s search marketing product roadmap and fully leverage Yahoo! Search Marketing’s APIs for their clients.

Per the story below, I have very good off the record source who says that while Sanaz is a true star, the project is not what has been reported. Trying to get more on what it *is*….stay tuned.

TC says yes:

Microsoft has gathered a team of twenty or more “rock star” developers who’ve been tasked at building their next generation search engine, a source has told us. The team, which supposedly came together recently, is based at Microsoft’s Silicon Valley headquarters in Mountain View.

We have few details on their approach to the product, other than hearing that it is definitely a “horizontal” engine (so, it’s not limited to a specific vertical like images), and is “very cool.”

Interesting that Google has let the Times behind the curtain to interview Amit Singhal and Udi Manber, two of the high priests of Google’s most important work – search ranking and quality. Saul Hansell, the author, called me for some thoughts and was kind enough to include a few of my thoughts in the piece.

Google recently allowed a reporter from The New York Times to spend a day with Mr. Singhal and others in the search-quality team, observing some internal meetings and talking to several top engineers. There were many questions that Google wouldn’t answer. But the engineers still explained more than they ever have before in the news media about how their search system works.

Indeed, for those of you who geek out on this stuff, there are clues to a number of things in here. Witness:

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Just was tipped to this filing from Yahoo, which declares that Farzad Nazem, the head of their Tech group, is leaving. That means of the three groups created in the re-org, only one position – Sue Decker’s – is filled:

On May 30, 2007 (the “Agreement Date”), Yahoo! Inc. (the “Company”) entered into an agreement with Farzad Nazem (the “Separation Agreement”) providing for Mr. Nazem’s resignation as Head of Technology Group and Chief Technology Officer of the Company, effective as of June 8, 2007 (the “Separation Date”). A copy of the Separation Agreement is filed with this report as Exhibit 10.1 and is incorporated herein by reference.

I have sent a note to Yahoo asking about this. I can’t find any news stories referencing it yet, nor any Yahoo releases save the SEC form filed today. For now, his image and bio is still on Yahoo’s corp. page.

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I’m not at the D conference this week, as business has kept me on the East Coast. But at that event, Jason Calacanis just launched his “people-powered search engine” and I happened to be meeting with one of his Board members here in New York. So I got a bit of inside scoop. Jason has a star studded line up of investors (from CBS to Jon Miller to Mark Cuban to Fred Wilson to many more), and a focus on the top search terms – the head of search, so to speak, including human brains (humans help organize the best results for the top search terms, as I understand it). More here, the site is not yet live. I’ve asked Jason for an interview, once he gets through the crush of D, I hope he’ll have the time to respond.

Google has once again taken a good idea from a competitor (in this case, A9’s Block View) and taken to the next level. Check out this review from Where 2.0:

This morning Google gave their 2D maps an incredible realworld addition. Its a street-view, that in certain cities, will let you get a street side view of the area you are currently in. This is not just a static, A9-style image. It will also let you move along the street in a smooth manner and even more amazing it will let you change your angle and continue moving that way. This will be formally launched at Where 2.0 later today.

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