SearchMe

In this article we are going to explore all facets of SearchMe, from its origins to its impact today. SearchMe is a topic that has captured the attention and interest of many people over the years, and its relevance continues to be evident in different areas. Throughout the next few lines, we will carefully examine the most important aspects of SearchMe, its evolution over time and its presence in today's society. In addition, we will analyze its influence in various fields, offering a complete and detailed vision of SearchMe that will allow the reader to better understand its importance and meaning in the modern world.

SearchMe Inc.
Company typeSearch engine
IndustryInternet
FoundedCalifornia, US
Headquarters
Mountain View, California
San Francisco, California
,
US
Key people
Randy Adams (CEO)
ProductsSearch
Websitewww.searchme.com Edit this on Wikidata

SearchMe was a visual search engine based in Mountain View, California. It organized search results as snapshots of web pages — an interface similar to that of the iPhone's and iTunes's album selection.[1][2]

In July 2009, the company lost funding and the search engine went offline.[3]

History

Founding

SearchMe was founded in March 2005 by Randy Adams and John Holland.[4][5] Adams was inspired to start this search engine when his 5-year-old son was having difficulty reading. He hoped to create a search engine that "would improve the experience of finding information online".[5] Sequoia Capital spent millions of dollars to fund SearchMe during the website's opening years.[5]

In March 2008, the site was launched in beta status. In April 2008, the company launched its search engine on the Internet.[6]

Offline in July 2009

The company had 1.8 million visitors in March 2009, but by May of the same year, the number of visitors decreased to 600,000.[7] On July 24, 2009, SearchMe went offline due to financial troubles, such as maintaining the servers.[8]

Of its 45 employees, SearchMe announced in July 2009 it planned to dismiss 35. The company attempted to concentrate on the market of broadband TV.[8]

Searches

As search queries were being made, SearchMe returned categories that were related to the topic. The search engine had Facebook and Twitter links so that the results could be shared.[9] The top of the screen displayed the screenshot, while the bottom revealed the hyperlink and a site's description. Moving the mouse from left to right made the screen "flip in the corresponding direction".[10]

SearchMe's tagline was "You'll know it when you see it."[11] As of March 2008, the website had indexed one billion pages.[11]

Revenue

It required about 3 million searches every day for the company to "break even".[6] The website received its revenue from advertisements. Advertisements were displayed through screenshots of the products or companies that were being promoted. Search results were ranked through algorithms and the number of views a website had received. Websites that were "visually appealing" were ranked higher than those that were not.[6]

Criticism

SearchMe had been criticized for not providing the number of search results, causing users to not know whether they were perusing through 10 results or 1000 results.[11] Some of SearchMe's screenshots were difficult to read, causing users to decide whether a site is relevant based on its appearance.[12] However, the website highlighted the search queries for easier perusal of the screenshot.[13]

Other services

In 2007, SearchMe founded Wikiseek, which indexed Wikipedia pages and sites that were linked to from Wikipedia articles.[4]

In October 2008, SearchMe released a music streaming service, which enables users to download an unlimited number of songs.[14] The service relied on Imeem's collection of music.[15]

References

  1. ^ Weisenthal, Joseph (2008-05-11). "Sequoia-Backed Searchme Launches With $25 Million". Paidcontent.org. CBS News. Archived from the original on 2009-07-14. Retrieved June 4, 2009.
  2. ^ Hamilton, Anita (2008-07-28). "Why Cuil Is No Threat to Google". Time. Archived from the original on 2009-05-13. Retrieved June 4, 2009.
  3. ^ Arrington, Michael (2009-07-24). "SearchMe May Go Offline Tomorrow (Updated: Offline Now)". TechCrunch. Washington Post. Archived from the original on 2009-07-27. Retrieved 2 August 2009.
  4. ^ a b Arlington, Michael (2007-01-16). "Wikipedia Search Engine WikiSeek Launches". TechCrunch. Archived from the original on 2009-06-01. Retrieved June 4, 2009.
  5. ^ a b c Olsen, Stefanie (2008-03-11). "Searchme nabs $31 million from Google backer, others". CNET Networks. Retrieved June 4, 2009.
  6. ^ a b c Francisco, Bambi (2009-05-27). "SearchMe launches on Nokia Ovi store". VatorNews. Archived from the original on 2009-06-06. Retrieved June 4, 2009.
  7. ^ Arrington, Michael (2009-07-24). "SearchMe Searching For A Buyer". Tech Crunch. Archived from the original on 2009-08-02. Retrieved 2 August 2009.
  8. ^ a b Tartakoff, Joseph (2009-07-24). "Sequoia-Backed Visual Search Engine Searchme Goes Dark". Paidcontent.org. Archived from the original on 2009-07-27. Retrieved 2 August 2009.
  9. ^ "Top 5 visual search engines". Pandia. 2009-05-19. Archived from the original on 2009-05-22. Retrieved June 4, 2009.
  10. ^ Crossman, Craig (2009-01-16). "Computer America: Searchme.com Offers Visual Search Engine". Palm Beach Daily News. Archived from the original on 2009-07-15. Retrieved June 4, 2009.
  11. ^ a b c Chartier, David (2008-03-23). "CoverFlow meets search: hands-on with Searchme visual engine". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on 2009-07-17. Retrieved June 4, 2009.
  12. ^ Sullivan, Danny (2008-06-26). "Visual Search The Future? Spare Me The Eye Candy". Search Engine Land. Archived from the original on 2009-06-10. Retrieved June 4, 2009.
  13. ^ Shuey, Scott (2008-08-09). "A new way to search web". Gulf News. Archived from the original on 2009-07-15. Retrieved June 4, 2009.
  14. ^ Reisinger, Don (2008-10-20). "Searchme tries music streaming to attract users". CNET Networks. Archived from the original on 2012-10-24. Retrieved June 4, 2009.
  15. ^ Schonfeld, Erick (2008-10-20). "SearchMe Adds Music Search With Unlimited Streaming Via Imeem Widgets". TechCrunch. Archived from the original on 2009-06-20. Retrieved June 4, 2009.