Europe to Challenge Google

[SeleucusNicator]

http://www.digitalmediaasia.com/default.asp?ArticleID=12650

n his New Year's address outlining his administration's plans for 2006, French President Jacques Chirac focused on plans for a European search engine to rival US internet companies such as Yahoo and Google. Some of the top tech labs in France and Germany are reportedly working on the 'Quaero' (Latin for 'to search') search engine.

Those involved in the Quaero project, including Thomson, France Telecom and Deutsche Telekom, have said that it will be much more than a typical search engine. It will provide an array of multimedia tools for identifying and indexing images, sound and text. Quaero will also reportedly include a powerful translating tool which will be able to 'understand' audio as well as text. The developers plan to make Quaero available on all platforms, including PCs, mobile devices and digital TVs.

The ambitious project will probably not be available anytime in the near future. Quaero is still in the earliest stages of development, so early that none of the major players have yet ventured a guess as to how much the project might cost. When Quaero does launch, it will have a great deal of catching up to do. Google currently has a tight hold on its position as the world's leading search engine, and it shows no signs of loosening its grip. The company is coming off its busiest year yet, with new projects in software offerings, VoIP and library digitisation.

The Quaero project is by no means the first attempt to dethrone Google. Companies like Microsoft and Yahoo spend millions of dollars every year to compete with the search engine. But for the Quaero project, more may be at stake, namely Europe's cultural identity in the information age. As President Chirac said in his New Year's address, 'Today the new geography of knowledge and cultures is being drawn. Tomorrow, that which is not available online runs the risk of being invisible to the world.'

This is easily the most bizarre story I have heard in quite a while.

 

[The Yankee]

Government-made search engines? For what purpose?

Myabe it'll all be useful in the end...but why involve "labs in France and Germany" to make it all happen?

 

[The Condor]

Bah, nothing can rival google. Besides google sounds cooler that Quaero. They might do some cool stuff eventually but it will be hard to get people to leave google since it is already is a well-known and widely spread place with enough features and extras to satisfy people for a long time.

Also: happy 1,400.

 

[El_Machinae]

After trying to navigate government-sponsored websites, I can only feel pity for the taxpayers in this instance.

 

[Gabryel Karolin]

I guess Chirac heard of the "French military victories" prank and got pissed off. Actually I would not be extremely surprised if that was the case.

 

[Smellincoffee]

First he wanted a new word for email, now this....

 

[Dreadnought]

I guess this is another French attempt to twart america...

 

[Sparta]

After trying to navigate government-sponsored websites, I can only feel pity for the taxpayers in this instance.

I'll heartily second that. Good point.

 

[Till]

I prefer our pork without anti-american flavour, but to each his own.

But for the Quaero project, more may be at stake, namely Europe's cultural identity in the information age.

The idea of our culture being dependent on some sort of internet search engine is... unorthodox, to say the least. I would have expected a statement like that come from a computer nut, not a statesman.

 

[El_Machinae]

Thanks.

As a non-French consumer, I actually benefit from survival pressure in the information processing technologies. Sure, the French will have to spend 10x the money Google will to keep up with Google, but information processing is a POWERFUL tool to advancing our society. And if the French make a good product, then I benefit. Maybe I would have benefitted more if the French had invested their taxes elsewhere, but I'll still benefit.

 

[The Yankee]

Anyone else getting a creepy image of an huge underground lab with white coats everywhere, working and Chirac standing there...about to flip a switch...

"It's alive!....The search engine....of the FUTURE!!!"

Does anyone plan on using this? Yes, it's still far away, but does anyone think this is a good idea?

 

[amadeus]

Anyone else getting a creepy image of an huge underground lab with white coats everywhere, working and Chirac standing there...about to flip a switch...

 

[Rik Meleet]

Good idea.

Google can and will fail to find you articles, on some occasions. Especially country specific and area specific. If Quaero can fill that gap, all the better. But it will not replace Google, unless it is far better. Who knows. Good thing they try.

 

[El_Machinae]

Worst case (for non-French), we get something better than Google.

Worst case (for French), you'll begrudge the wasted dollars.

 

[Babbler]

I bet it all the jobs come from the project will all be located on Britain, if Eurocratic logic holds.

 

[general_kill]

The internet really is the future. I'm surprised that the United States doesn't have a department specifically assigned to mind all matters concerning the internet.

 

[The Yankee]

It'd be too full of pork barrel spending and seems ripe for needless bureaucracy. The giant companies in America seem to be holding fine, so far.

 

[El_Machinae]

Considering I can get free wireless by moving around the city, and I can have a free email account ... I'd say that they're serving us okay right now ...

The internet has become so 'cheap' that the abusers (aka free riders) aren't even a concern. That's a really good state of affairs.

 

[Elrohir]

Hey, if France wants to completely waste millions of dollars on some useless project, that's fine by me. At least now I'm reassured that it's not just the American government that is always throwing away money for no reason. (Bridge to nowhere anyone?)

 

[The Yankee]

Two bridges to nowhere, actually.

At least I can see more of a use for this project.