May 6th, 2009
Is Twitter, instead of Yahoo, the better buy for Microsoft?
Finally, some buzz about Twitter that’s worth a second look.
Yesterday’s rumor about Apple being interested in Twitter was ridiculous. But the headlines now - not rumors but more like unsolicited suggestions - suggest that Twitter should instead be on on Microsoft’s radar (and Google’s, too, for that matter.)
Microsoft is reportedly close to a cutting a search deal with Yahoo. One source tells All Things D’s Kara Swisher that a deal is “closer than it has ever been.” But some are now wondering if Microsoft might be better off picking up Twitter for some pocket change (well, pocket change to a company like Microsoft) and be on the forefront of a technology that has the potential to disrupt search as we’ve come to know it.
Just last night, at the TEDx event in San Francisco, some folks and I got into a pretty good discussion about the value of Twitter, specifically Twitter Search and the potential to disrupt Google’s hold on search.
By tracking the search terms that people are using on Google, Google Trends can offer a peek into the topics that are on the minds of Web surfers. But Twitter Search takes you deeper - offering a real-time glimpse into more than just the topics on their minds but also what they’re saying or thinking about those very topics. (see image)
It’s one thing to know, for example, that Swine Flu is a hot Google search. It’s quite another to listen to the conversations that people are having about the swine flu - from the fear in a community to the precautions that some are taking.
Twitter has said that it wants to go it alone - but money talks. And Microsoft has the kind of money that it takes to make Twitter listen. Here’s Microsoft’s chance to get ahead in the search business by getting in front of the new face of search. Silicon Alley Insider offers some strong counter-arguments (largely around monetization models and advertising potential) to the nay-sayers who will argue against a Microsoft-Twitter deal.
Twitter search isn’t as thorough as Google, what with the vast amount of information that’s been indexed into the Google search engine. But, if a company like Microsoft can bankroll Twitter - and leave it alone (!!!) to evolve and flourish into other business models - then maybe Microsoft can actually give Google a run for its money on a new playing field.
Otherwise, a Yahoo deal brings together two companies that couldn’t challenge Google’s search business on their own - and are rolling the dice to see if they can do it together.
Sam Diaz is a senior editor at ZDNet. See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.
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| 05/06/09
