MyLiveSearch, a new Melbourne-based search engine, promises to be the first true “real-time” search engine to appear on the www. According to the owner, Rob Gabriel, 35, this search engine gives better, more relevant results than Google because it is a truly “live” search. In light of these developments, it is quite interesting to see that Google is already keeping a close eye on this promising technology.

Google has a history of acquiring technology that might help a competitor. I foresee a situation where Google will “swallow” MyLiveSearch in the near future if it proves to be successful. Google has already “swallowed” the likes of:

• Pyra Labs, the company that coined the word blogger.
• Youtube, the masters of online video.
• Panoramio, a geospatial photo-sharing Service (swallowed just yesterday!)

The list is quite long. You can refer to Google’s acquisition report card and wikipedia for more details.

Although I am ardent Google fan myself, I really do not like this behaviour of acquiring some of these highly innovative start-ups. This behaviour kills the underlying philosophy behind these new technologies because they become googlized. I would be more excited if Google would, on its own, come up with innovative ideas and technologies other than the outright purchase of finished products.

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