10 April 2007

Google Voice Local Search: voice-activated local business searching by phone

Google, the internet search provider, has revealed its latest foray into the mobile search market. The world's leading search engine has announced that it is currently testing a free 411 service on the company's Labs site - which could spell trouble for other directory assistance providers across the US.

Currently in beta testing, the service - known as Google Voice Local Search - makes local business searches accessible via phone. The service uses the same local business information as Google Maps, but dispenses with the need for an internet connection.

The service can be used both from a mobile phone or landline and, according to Google, the service can detect where the call is coming from and then prompts callers to speak their search query. Callers can ask for a particular business by name or by category and, if there is an exact match to the search terms, the service can connect the user directly to the business free of charge. Otherwise results from the search are read back to the caller, who can also request that results be sent via text message to a mobile phone.

Google's latest experiment follows on from Microsoft's recent agreement to acquire voice search firm Tellme Networks - a deal which, according to sources cost Microsoft more than $800 million, making the transaction their largest acquisition in five years, although that deal could well be eclipsed if Microsoft succeed in their attempt to purchase DoubleClick, an online advertising company currently involved in a tug-of-war between Microsoft and Google.

Sources claim that improving quality and falling costs of voice search technology are tempting the big players - Google, Microsoft and Yahoo! - into looking beyond pay-per-click Web search advertising and approach pay-per-call marketing as a lucrative market in which to get involved. Analysts at the Kelsey Group estimate that the US directory assistance market generates $9.4 billion per year, and expect that Google's potential entry into the market could transform the finances of the businesses involved, where callers to conventional directory assistance services can expect to pay in excess of $1 or more.

Citing estimates made by investment bank, Thomas Weisel, spokesperson Matt Booth, an analyst with the Pasadena-based Kelsey Group said that each call to directory assistance services costs a minimum 16 cents to pay human operators to provide answers to telephone enquiries. But by hooking an automated service into advertising-supported local business information, it is estimated that Google could potentially cut the costs of providing directory assistance to around two cents per call, while generating around 10 cents for each business referral.

The service is available on 1-800-GOOG-411 (1-800-466-4411) from any phone, but Google warn that the service is currently only available in English, and only in the United States with just US local business listings currently available. Google have also stressed that the service might not be available at all times and may not work for all users. The service is free to use, with no charge applied for either the call or for connecting the user to the business. However, regular phone charges may apply, depending on the user's telephone service provider.

Google Voice Local Search isn't the company's first move into mobile-based search: Google currently offers SMS search, while special versions of its homepage and Gmail service have been designed specifically for mobile browsers. Google have in the past also dabbled with ways of allowing phone users to use their voices to retrieve information, with efforts dating back to 2002. However, the launch of this new service heralds Google's first move into a market currently wholly-owned by the phone networks themselves.

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