Google’s Mobile Search Plans: Will It Win The Race? » mobilegroove

Google’s mobile content superstore may worry the status quo – but clever companies can make this model work in their favor.

When I started work in 2004 on my 200+ page industry-first report on mobile search (a report that continues to be an Informa best-seller) Medio Systems was just coming out of stealth mode and nimble newcomer Taptu was just a great idea. Today the industry recognizes that mobile search is more than a tool to navigate the avalanche of mobile content and apps; it’s a game-changing service that will transform how we find and buy digital goods and services on-the-fly.

We’re going to get a taste of this over the next months when several companies take the wraps off technologies and services that will absolutely rock the industry. (I’ve seen demos and signed NDAs from companies headquartered in the U.S.and Europe – so be assured this site will have the details, analysis and c-level interviews to put these path-breaking products into perspective…In fact, MSG will have an in-depth look at one such mobile search service tomorrow.)

One to watch is Google. While this detailed post suggests efforts by Google to develop a mobile content search and monetization offer (as reported in the Wall Street Journal) are a last-ditch effort to stay ahead of competitors, sources familiar with the matter tell me the exact opposite is the case. When – and I purposely won’t say if – Google launches the service it will revolutionize mobile search.

More importantly, it will create the conditions for a thriving mobile marketplace. Finally, after months of thinking about how to jumpstart demand for downloadable mobile content, a major force is going to come in and shake things up. Even content companies that might not be thrilled by the idea of Google brokering the sale of mobile content will have to admit there are huge benefits in working with a company that has become synonymous with search.

If Google can create a content bazaar, it will be better for everyone. But no worry that Google- alone- will call the shots. Content providers and advertisers have built their business models on getting in front of as many eyeballs as possible, and there is no reason why they wouldn’t want placement on other big-name search engines and white-label services. If anything, the arrival of Google increases the need for metasearch tools and middlemen to bubble up the best results from all the search engines and the best buys for advertisers.

A word about the carrier side of the equation. Many interpret the arrival of Google as a threat to mobile operators, but I would counter it’s only an issue to operators who suffer from cognitive dissonance. Refusing to accept the reality that the only sustainable business model is one based on openness is a recipe for failure. The winning strategy may be for operators to be the dumb pipe at the center of a smart ecosystem.

To support this argument I’d like to share some novel views that came out of a discussion I had today with Brendan Benzing, InfoSpace VP of Mobile Search. He is amused by industry reaction to the Google leak and asks why carriers assume it’s a win for Google. After all, any smart mobile operator could do battle with Google’s mobile content superstore – and win (!)

All they have to do is open up, make it easy (perhaps even automating the process) for content owners to submit their content and apps, and make it all searchable so users can find the content they want. (Hey, isn’t that Google’s model? And isn’t this approach also at the core of eBay’s competitive advantage.) Put another way, there’s no rule that says Google has to be the only game in town. As Brendan put it: “Operators can take a leadership position in creating the process that allows content companies to submit their content and make sure that content gets found.”

Mobile operators have the audience and the access – that’s a powerful combination. Now they just need to change their mindset. It’s a simple enough check list: Stop making providers and developers jump through hoops, invite everyone in to submit their content, collect the right metadata to make sure the stuff is found, provide a mobile search service that will expose it to users, facilitate the billing and be fair about the rev-share.

Consider the example of Handango, a virtual emporium for smartphone content and apps. It has become the prime destination for users to find out about cool stuff for their phones. It leverages more than 16,000 content partners, whom it attracted by taking some of the pain out of software publishing, and provides direct access to millions of customers through its multi-channel distribution network. It’s an open model mobile operators could easily adapt and make work in their favor.

Even better, carriers could join together with other operators (take the example of Gallery in France) to share the burden, extend the reach and grow the stockpile of content on offer. There’s strength in numbers and – when it comes to selling downloadable mobile content – the superstore with the biggest selection and the best search experience wins.

Which brings me back to Google. There are reams written about Google’s plans to enable a mobile content search service (and potentially offer payment through is online Checkout service), but even this strategy will stand and fall on Google’s ability to deliver a superior search experience. A build-and-they-will-come approach doesn’t guarantee success – even for Google.

What do users really want? At the moment, we can’t be sure. They may want results from mobile storefronts, or they may want to explore easy-to-navigate made-for-mobile sites, or they may want results that include familiar Internet destinations and a pick of long tail sites that reflect the breadth and depth of the wider Web. Until we’re sure, it’s best to offer them a choice.

However, we can be sure users demand relevant search results – instantly. Recent usability surveys confirm users have a low tolerance for high click-distance. Improving the relevancy of results is critical, and sits at the center Yahoo’s oneSearch strategy. (It’s also high on the agenda of search providers including Fast, InfoSpace, JumpTap and Medio Systems, which has drawn from its recommendation DNA to suggest similar content to users based on their search patterns.)

Even if Google becomes a self-contained content portal (it’s a scenario a Google exec recently outlined during a Mobile Monday – and mysteriously hasn’t mentioned since), its first duty will be to delight the customer. Users will vote with their feet if the results are irrelevant (and that goes double for the adverts, by the way).

Size matters, but the ability to deliver the right results to the right users is the value proposition that will separate the mobile search leaders from the also-rans. Google has work to do – but so does everybody else.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 18th, 2007 at 9:29 pm and is filed under Mobile Marketing, Mobile Search, Personalization. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.