by Search Copywriter
B. Emirzian
B. Emirzian
Last week, Google's vice president of engineering, Udi Manber, announced the search engine's play into a publishing platform called Knol - 'knol' being a unit of knowledge. The platform is being measured up against the likes of Wikipedia and Maholo, with Knol authors able to create topics and use tools to interlink articles and content. However, one distinction defines the new platform: Knol spotlights the author of each article - something that's simply not practical with a large-scale, collaborative project like Wikipedia.
Since Knol pages will bear the names of individual authors, users won't be able to openly edit pages that aren't their own. They will, however, be able to submit edits and suggestions to the original author for approval. That said, even Google won't be editing the platform, nor will they advocate content in any way - placing more power in the hands of authors and opinionated users. Additionally, the platform will allow authors to monetize their pages using Google ads, enabling them to make some money from their work.
Some believe that Google's method of monetizing content via advertising should disqualify - or at least dissuade - the search engine from competing with other platforms. However, as many are aware, this isn't the first time Google has contended under such circumstances. Blogger - another text-publishing platform - happens to be one of Google's huge successes, and holds various similarities to the up-and-coming Knol platform. Both are personal publishing platforms, giving authors the chance to display their writing. Moreover, if readers like what they see on Knol, they'll have better means to access work by the same author - simply because they'll be able to identify the author via the platform.
"Somehow the web evolved without a strong standard to keep authors' names highlighted," Manber wrote on Google's corporate blog, adding, "We believe that knowing who wrote a knol will significantly help users make better use of web content."
Similarities between Knol and Digg have also been pointed out, specifically in that multiple Knol pages outlining a single topic might compete with one another. However, trial posts hint that the final authority on Knol quality will rest in Google's search rankings. It has even been suggested that the platform will employ both a social network of Knol users and a main page that ranks the most popular Knol pages by page views, votes and discussion flow.
But one big question still remains: what will become of good ol' Wikipedia? There's currently no speculation of Wikipedia taking a blow from Knol, simply because Knol's focus on authors makes it somewhat of an antithesis of the community-driven Wikipedia model. Even Jimmy Wales, Wikipedia's founder, shrugged off the potential challenge, stating that Google's service would encourage competing, opinionated articles on any topic, whereas Wikipedia strives for objectivity and has a single article per topic that represents the collective knowledge of its authors. About.com, Maholo and Squidoo, on the other hand, could face a little more heat.
While Knol is currently in beta and in the hands of a small group of testers, there's no speculation yet as to when - or even if - Knol will be released to the public.
