So, this is some very interesting stuff. G started doing this a little while ago with some major headings like jobs and real estate. Gbase is one of the most important but least talked about and understood search utilities.
Yet, many savvy vertical and local aggregators are already rountinely uploading data to Gbase. As a result, their content is showing up in some of the most important positions in search. And like you show Jeremy, even at the top of the serps for explicit local queries, notwithstanding being crawled, contained with the traditional serps, and need i say pure local utilities.
We saw the same segmentation (seperate the utility) and then integration (bring it back together) with pure local search results in traditional serps. Surely Froogle, has the same qualities. And Yahoo has for a long-time acted in this manner with their Inside Yahoo Channels like auto, real estate, travel and many more.
Gbase is really the beginning of a different animal however. Currently G base already feeds search, froogle and local. It is the consolidated distributed data and content system. It is internet classifieds on steriods. It in itself is a multi-billion dollar proposition.
At the same time, Gbase currently has the same organic and surely idealistic qualities that founded google.com. There is no stopping its growth. The only question is what will it look like in the end. What does it mean as a destination vs. an integrated part of natural search. Does it compete with the vertical aggregators? Does it compete with eBay? Does it compete with CraigsList? Newspapers Classifieds? Weekly trade pubs? Does it feed them? At what point will monetization occur? Etc. Etc. Etc.
Clearly there is an ownership of inventory consideration right now that needs to be crossed as Kirby raises. We all know for example that the MLS database certainly isn't proprietary to all those that push it under their interactive skin.
In the interim, a very neat little opportunity exists, just like it has for a long time with local.
Recently, I heard someone use a term that best exemplifies data and search in the coming years... it was referred as the 'atomization' period. ~separating something into fine particles.
that something is your content. its seperatation is absolutely necessary for its dispersion. it is the controlled and comprehensive dispersion of content that lets it live in breath in critical utilities like Gbase and Local, on and on.
We used to think that off-site optimization meant getting links. For me, off-site optimization is about atomization, which happens to include links. Gbase is an important part of this understanding.
