baidu

Buzz Out Loud 862: George Bush, Pollution, cardboard, whatever

Today's title is an example from Natali's mind of some tags you might put on a video with Yahoo's new video tagging game. I would like to see that video. We also touch on the myth of Cyber Monday and keep you up to date on Linux on the iPhone.

Listen now: Download today's podcast EPISODE 862

Cyber Monday supposed to be big this year http://www.pcworld.com/article/154458/a_cyber_monday_tech_shopping_primer.html http://news.cnet.com/8301-13845_3-10110111-58.html

Joost for iPhone http://news.cnet.com/8301-17939_109-10109753-2.html

Yahoo Video Tag game http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/yahoos_new_videotaggame_lets_you_tag_within_videos.php… Read more

Dark times for Web ads: Analysts cut forecasts

Given the day-to-day changes in the world's economic fortunes, it's surprising that analysts are willing to make any forecasts at all, but among those who do, the news isn't sunny.

In the Internet sector, nobody is backing away from predictions that online sales and advertising will fare relatively well. But larger economic factors are inescapable, according to some new reports.

"We are lowering our estimates on Google, Yahoo, Amazon, VistaPrint, eHealth, Blue Nile, and Gmarket to reflect: (1) a weaker macro outlook exacerbated by the bank crisis; (2) the rapid rise in the dollar over the … Read more

Chinese social networks block Baidu indexing

User privacy concerns on Chinese social-networking sites have led the biggest players to block indexing by Baidu, China's leading search engine, according to Beijing-based Marbridge Consulting.

The blogging site of Sohu.com, China's leading portal, as well as social networking sites including 51.com, Xiaonei, and Hainei have blocked Baidu's spiders from indexing the sites, Marbridge reported. Other search engines may also be blocked.

The reasoning behind this move may reveal a pragmatic commitment to security by obscurity for people who post under their real names and may want to avoid attention from employers, acquaintances, and government … Read more

Why Baidu outperforms Google in China

The question of why Baidu continues to outperform Google in the world's largest internet user-base has fueled much discussion. I explore business practices and cultural factors that may have fueled this advantage in an article for China International Business this month.

But while Baidu leads now, there's a possibility that Google's strength in the "cloud computing" world may lead to gains in the long run.

Check out the article here.

Investor: Consumer Web best bet for high returns

MENLO PARK, Calif.--If you want to make money as a venture capitalist, the consumer Web offers the highest, most consistent returns, according to Steve Jurvetson.

The low costs required to start these companies is a big part of the appeal, Jurvetson, a partner in Draper Fisher Jurvetson, said in an interview at the Nordic Green conference here this week. By contrast, biodiesel start-ups need millions to get through the experimental stage and then tens of millions to go into pre-production.

Networking also works well with Web companies. A successful word-of-mouth campaign that costs almost nothing can propel growth rates. … Read more

WWW2008 - Snippets from William Chang of Baidu, plus some on the semantic web

Other than highlighting Baidu Chief Scientist William Chang's statement that China doesn't need Wikipedia, here is a selection from the Twitterati (including me) on his presentation, and a concurrent one on the semantic web.

web2asia: Robin Li of Baidu could not make it to his key note, Chief Scientist Dr. William Chang is taking over web2asia: facts on chinese internet: only 1/8 internet users earn usd 5000/year me: Baidu's William Chang: Only 1/8 of Chinese internet users earn $5,000/year. me: Chang: Half of Chinese users over 25, half under 25, according to … Read more

Baidu's William Chang: 'No reason for China to use Wikipedia'

William Chang, chief scientist leading Chinese search engine Baidu, said it's natural for Chinese to use Baidupedia (Baidu Baike) rather than the foreign Wikipedia.

"There's, in fact, no reason for China to use Wikipedia, a service based 'out there,'" Chang said at the WWW2008 conference in Beijing on Tuesday. "It's very natural for China to make its own products."

I agree that there's not always a reason for people to use global services, especially when what they deal with is primarily domestic. But with the wiki world, I think the value of … Read more

Report: Google aims to top China search

Google is giving itself about five years to unseat Baidu.com's dominance for Internet search in China, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday night.

"We would like to aspire to be a market leader in five years," Kai-Fu Lee, president of the Google's Greater China operation, told the Journal. Google also is examining possible investments in social networking and mobile Internet services, he said.

Chinese search engine Baidu hails Barack Obama's Web cred

Chinese-language search engine Baidu has an unusual new mascot atop its home page: U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama.

A cartoon version of Obama is depicted next to a donkey, the Democratic party emblem. He's holding a net as though casting it, and attached to the end of the net is a computer mouse--get it? It's the Internet.

This is part of a "person of the month" feature that Baidu has instituted since November, the blog Shanghaiist explains. Each month, Baidu selects a real-life or fictional personality who has ranked high in its search queries. … Read more