03 April 2009

Is Google about to Twitter it's way to the stars?

Though not officially confirmed, tech websites are reporting that search engine giant Google is in talks to acquire the massively popular social networking tool Twitter.

Industry website TechCrunch is reporting that they've heard from two sources close to the negotiations that the deal between the two companies is in the late stages. The site estimates that the deal could cost Google close to $250 million (£169 million).

A few months ago Twitter turned down an offer to be acquired by Facebook, who offered half a billion dollars. Google is proposing to pay cash, or publicly valued stock equivalent to cash, for the micro-blogging phenomenon.

TechCrunch notes that Google is probably interested in Twitter because of its strength as a search tool. Michael Arrington, who wrote the acquisition post, said: "It holds the key to the best real-time database and search engine on the Internet, and Google doesn't even have a horse in the game."

In previous posts, Arrington has noted that more people are using Twitter to talk about brands and how they interact with them. He notes that there is much to discover at the search.twitter.com address, which has welcomed users searching for news and feedback.

Arrington notes that Twitter is building their business model on this plan. He wrote: "In aggregate it's extremely valuable. And as Google has shown, search is vastly monetisable - somewhere around 40 per cent of all online advertising revenue goes to ads on search listings today."

If it goes ahead, this acquisition could be very good news for Google, as the value of Twitter is only expected to rise over time.

Interestingly, the founders of Twitter, Evan Williams and Biz Stone, also sold Blogger software to Google, meaning this would make their second deal with the search giant.

But the rumours are still only that. TechCrunch has also reported receiving emails from sources which say that the discussions are still in the very early stages. As well, it's also been thought that the companies are working together on a real time search engine only for Google. If only we had confirmation of what exactly they are twittering about together.

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