Forum Moderators: bakedjake
Yeah, so far as we've heard, Google has kept their costs at rock-bottom. Let's hope rock-bottom is low enough.
When I posted this, I had forgotten about Jeeves. The butler has been listed as an April casualty by NFFC's deathwatch site.
Quarterly figures will soon be out, then we'll be able to synchronize our watches.
IMHO The top contenders (in no order)
Yahoo,ODP,Google,L$,AOL,Fast
We'll just have to see how the cards fall...
Lucky
yes.
>ODP -- Still the best and in for the long haul
But will have to be transformed when AOL shuts down Netscape.
>AltaVista -- gettin sold to L$ and adding GoTo
Something, but not quiet that. LS is feeling the pinch. I think MS or Yahoo will buy it.
>Lycos -- Looking for new income
Lycos is the most solid of all the engines. Even in better position than yahoo.
>Excite -- making a come back
Going once, going twice...it's history.
>iWon -- did they win
Will stick, but not because of CBS.
>Looksmart -- partner with AV,GoTo,INK
Will die, or be boughten by About.com within 18months.
>AskJeeves -- We'll have to ask him
Big trouble at AJ. Won't survive, won't be boughten.
>GoTo -- getting richer every day
They are at the peak of their game...and still losing money. hmmm.
>Google -- getting bigger and better
Will have to figure out what they are to do when the contract with Yahoo runs out in July. I could see Yahoo buying Alta.
>Fast Search -- partnership with Excite
Will continue to rise due to the low cost nature of fast. With the infusion of hardware from compaq and the money from lycos - they are the force in Europe. The net in Europe continues to grow, while the net in the US is stagnant and has almost reached its full saturation point.
Not mentioned, NorthernLight:
They are also an se on a budget. They are the only engine to successfully sell indexing/document retrieval on a pay-per-page basis. They will be here for a long time.
Yes, I agree! But itīs still the same problem as at the us-market, sometime the SEs has to earn money.
For instance Lycos-Europe:
how could it be, that a company have a turnover of EUR 40,2 mio, but also a loss of EUR 99,7 mio?
Okay, Lycos-Germany is well known but the quality of search-results are terrible - and it only updates twice a year. What does it help: nothing.
An important factor can explain the situation in Europe. Unlike here, phone bills in most European contries are based on usage. It is unthinkable to surf for hours on with a phone connection. Technologies like cable and DSL explain this sudden boom. The market will saturate there at a lower ratio then here.
Hope European SE will be better prepared when it will happen.
oLeon, don't you think Lycos/Terra will get the problems with their se's figured out? I think they are just getting their sea legs. It is quite a leap to go international.
Second-Tier Portals: Going the Way of Go.com? [businessweek.com]
<<I think they are just getting their sea legs. It is quite a leap to go international.>>
Oh yeah, but itīs harder to survive when you are big and
immovable. And I disagree with the point of view that only the biggest will survive - the bigger the more money you lose, thatīs what happens now.
Weīll see in 2001.