The latest information from comScore; Bear Systems, a search engine statistics provider, shows that Ask holds around 5.8% of the Global/US market share which is the smallest piece of the search engine pie out of the top five. AOL holds 6.9%, MSNhas around 12.9%, Yahoo! enjoys a 28% share and the big dog Googlecommands a whopping 43.1%.
In order for Ask to compete it must be seen as an innovator and not a follower. The most recent example of this is Ask's new 'movies' feature. Type 'movies' into the Ask.com search engine and you'll be directed to a results page with another search form at the top. This search form will ask you for a zip code (or postal code) and keywords for finding the movies of your choice.
Users can search for movies by entering the movie title or keywords in the search bar, which will take them to the Internet Movie Database (IMD). They can also search for movie reviews by keyword, which will take them to the Movie Review Query Engine.
Ask is addressing the needs of users to use local search tools and has incorporated this into the 'Movie Answers' feature letting users search for local cinema times by zip or postal code. This feature takes users to www.MyWay.com and gives them a list of cinemas in their area, what movie they are showing, the times, movie ratings, and star-ratings for films. There is also a link that takes you to a review of the movie of your choice.
The Movie Answers feature also gives users links to current releases, upcoming releases, top box office information and top DVDs. Too bad only around 6% of the online community will be exposed to this service!
Google, the leader in search launched a similar local search tool earlier this year which enables users to see what is showing at their local cinema, be it an Odeon, Vue, or UGC.
