Ask Jeeves searches for an edge in Bloglines buy

Ask Jeeves searches for an edge in Bloglines buy

February 9, 2005

BY MICHAEL LIEDTKE

SAN FRANCISCO -- Underdog online search engine Ask Jeeves has bought Bloglines, a Web log index and Internet news funnel popular with serious readers of online journals, in its latest bid to gain ground on heavyweight rivals Google and Yahoo.

Oakland, Calif.-based Ask Jeeves completed the acquisition last week, but announced it Tuesday, though many of the online sites tracked by Bloglines spent the weekend debating the pros and cons of the combination. Ask Jeeves officials said the sales price won't be disclosed.

The acquisition stems from a widening interest in Web logs, or "blogs" -- a term used to describe the online journals that have morphed from mundane personal diaries into increasingly influential hubs of news and commentary.

California-based Bloglines, formed in 2003, has established itself as an important player in the field, with a searchable index of nearly 285 million articles posted on blogs.

Bloglines offers another advantage: It's a leader in "Really Simple Syndication," or RSS -- a system that plucks fresh information from designated sites, and then distributes the summaries and links to the user.

Ask Jeeves plans to maintain Bloglines' service and brand, and keep the startup's founder, Mark Fletcher.

Much of Bloglines' technology will be melded into Ask Jeeves' existing network of Web sites, which include Ask.com, iWon.com, Excite.com and Myway.com.

"Everyone has been licking their chops, waiting to get their hands on [Bloglines]," said Jim Lanzone, Ask Jeeves' senior vice president of search properties.

Ask Jeeves is counting on Bloglines to become a significant drawing card. The company has been trying to woo traffic from the Internet's search engine leaders, Google and Yahoo, as well as two of the Web's other biggest drawing cards, Microsoft Corp.'s MSN.com and Time Warner Inc.'s AOL.com.

More than bragging rights are at stake for Ask Jeeves. Search engines have become big money makers because of the text-based advertising links that appear alongside the main search results. Businesses pay commissions when their ad links are clicked, so search engine profits generally rise when Web site traffic increases.

While Ask Jeeves' profits have improved, the company's earnings growth hasn't been keeping pace with Google's and Yahoo's -- a factor that has hurt its standing with investors.

AP