May 31, 2006
Will Google be Google for the Mobile Phone?

As more people get smart phones, they're looking for ways to make them useful for search and other web activities. Although Google and Yahoo have introduced mobile versions, there are also other players in the game:

While Google and Yahoo are trying to extend their Web search engines into the wireless world, mobile search startups like 4Info and Promptu are trying to make the most of what people use cell phones for today -- voice calls and text messages.

4Info, a Palo Alto, Calif. startup, is aiming to popularize text messaging as a way to search the Web, presuming that cell-phone users want quick answers rather than page after page of search results. By sending text messages to 4Info's designated shortcode -- an abbreviated phone number used for information services -- users can receive sports scores, weather reports, flight information, and even package-tracking data. 4Info plans to sell keyword-related advertising, and has struck a deal with Gannett (Research) to promote its text-message services in the pages of USA Today.

"People want answers, not links," says Amol Joshi, 4info's senior vice president for business operations. "Google has the disadvantage of being a Web search firm."

...via Smart Mobs

Posted by dcoates at May 31, 2006 08:59 AM
Comments

Say what? "Google has the disadvantage of being a Web search firm."

And who put Google in that box? I think the Google SMS service is one of the coolest things you can do on a phone. (I know, I don't have much of a life...) I'd much rather interface with information through SMS than my phone-based browser. And yes, I do have a high-speed connection to my phone.

Posted by: Kevin on May 31, 2006 01:31 PM

Hey, I report, you decide (or something).

I agree with you. Google and Gmail are the main web apps I use on my mobile phone so I'm not sure why they wouldn't do well in that environment, but I don't have a vested interest in beating them in the marketplace :-)

Posted by: Deb on May 31, 2006 02:41 PM
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