February 10, 2006
Even though there are search engines out there that give a fair result for our interests, still with the endless stream of new information being added to the net daily, it is still a daunting task for consumers to get the info they want and seek.a
This was one of the key themes at the DEMO conference this week as approximately 70 companies were given six minute blocks of time to show off their wares. Finding a way to get better results is becoming a passion for a number of companies as they understand the potential profits for those who find the most accurate way.a
Chris Shipley, the executive producer of the show said this, “"There's a belief that whatever it is I'm looking for is out there, but I have a really difficult time finding it, Search algorithms alone are falling short in being able to provide real context around information."a
Matthew Fordahl talks about a new startup named Plum that is attempting to improve this very problem. He reports that Plum is unveiling a service that allows users to “group Web pages, e-mail, music, pictures and files from their desktop computers into on-line collections that can be kept private or made public for others to find.”
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Some other features he mentions are:
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“Web pages can be added to a Plum collection by clicking on a browser toolbar button, which calls up a box for choosing a picture, adding a description and creating an identifying tag. Content on the PC, such as a photo, can be added by clicking in a small program that imports files from a variety of applications.”
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Hans Peter Brondmo, Plum co-founder says that these public collections are analyzed by the service and other collections of interest are then displayed. He also says that ultimately there will be relevant ads contained in the collection pages.
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Evidently the killer app here is a secret algorithm used to analyze content and match it to others, similar to the shopping site type of matching interests from purchases into further recommendations the consumer may be interested in.
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The Plum collections will also be able to be emailed and will also be able to be syndicated as an “RSS” feed. It is also open and able to be edited.
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While Plum is far from being the only company trying to become the best content aggregator out there, it is good news for all of us that the competition for this area of service is making improvements in the searches that so many of us initiate.
