While there have been many real-time search engine launches over the past few months (Scoopler, Topsy, Collecta, CrowdEye), most of them so far have fizzled (see Google Website Trends chart above). After an initial burst of curiosity, interest tends to dive. One exception, however, is OneRiot, which appears to be gaining some early traction in the real-time search race.
This race has just begun, of course, and other real-time search startups are chasing hard. But OneRiot is already serving up results for more than one million search queries a day (see chart below). This would be a rounding error for any major search engine, but at least it is going in the right direction. Its investors think so. They ponied up another $7 million in a new round at the end of last month
OneRiot started to be noticed when it added link search from Twitter last May. But its search volume didn’t really take off until it launched its API, allowing other sites to tap into its real-time search and add it as a feature to their own Web app or site. OneRiot has 40 API partners, including Microsoft (sometimes bundled with IE)., browser add-ons Yoono and Shareaholic, and desktop apps like Nambu and EventBox.
All of these API partnerships add up. In fact, about 80 percent of OneRiot’s searches are coming through its APIs rather than directly on its site. OneRiot is building up market share by offering real-time search to others. (Rival Collecta is preparing to do the same thing by offering its own APIs soon). Search is a volume game, where the more search queries you can process, the better your results become. So OneRiot wants to power as many real-time searches as possible.
To the extent that OneRiot can familiarize people with the concept of real-time search in as many places as possible, that’s a good thing. But ultimately it needs to drive people back to OneRiot.com where it can control the entire experience (and the cash).
interesting, I probably should talk to them again
If 80% of searches are coming from their API, what is the big deal? Unless this can be monetised, what is the point of giving things away?
Indeed, it seems like their website is not monetised either. As far as I can see, I still have not seen a business model for any of the real time search players.
You need to worry about whether people are actually going to use your product before you formulate a business model… If you can’t complete step 1, don’t waste your time jumping ahead to step 2.
That’s some reverse logic…If you’re thinking of creating a product/service, you should have at least one viable option of how to monetize that service/product before you even begin creating it, otherwise you can end up wasting even more time, and for what if there’s no possible reward?
I think some of these companies need to come up with better ideas of monetization than the standard “I’ll just slap google adsense on the site and make bank”
Just curious — where’d they come up with the name OneRiot? I don’t equate that at all with realtime search, sounds like a cult or something.
Will OneRiot have the same issues as people have experienced with Twitter API, it would be scalable?
“Indeed, it seems like their website is not monetised either. As far as I can see, I still have not seen a business model for any of the real time search players.”
Just following in the footsteps of twitter.
With 1 million in queries and $27 million in funding, OneRiot still doesn’t handle the query volume that PubSub.com handled (with 1/10th the funding) five years ago.
bob wyman
yeah 7k to 14k uniques is real traction, eh?
OneRiot neeeds to accelerate its technology. It is not able to show results when someone enters a query with a slight spelling mistake.
It seems that its a smart move, why hard sell your product when you can get a few smart people better using your api and do the hard work for you.
Will OneRiot have the same issues as people have experienced with Twitter API, if it is not scalable?
While realtime search is great, being able to re-sort data is always useful for business
I would prefer to use a Google realtime search engine as they all just search what is there no intelligent guess and no relativity thing
I had no idea at all. Ripped some from this article.
Hmm.. interesting stats, lets see how it goes next.
^^^ SPAM
^^^ SPAM
Real time player we love them.
^^^ SPAM
Another search engine launched this week is dedicated exclusively to the Apple Store, so apple fanatics can find the apps they are looking for.
http://uquery.com
I’m not sure Google Trends is the right tool for this type of comparison, as I just checked and now it looks like OneRiot is fizzling too.
I think UVs is a better comparison. Looking at Compete you can see M-O-M declines off launch months (no doubt due to launch hype hangovers) but certainly wouldn’t say these other sites are fizzling. think its way too early in the game to make that kind of statement.
Here are the links to the Google Trends and Compete reports referenced above:
Google Trends: http://trends.g...=ytd&sort=0
Compete: http://siteanal...m+scoopler.com/
well, I just asked it to seach for “induction motor” and all I got was 3 hits about cars.
that’ll be broken then.
OneRiot has done a fantastic job with their API. The response times are fast and it’s very easy to integrate. We’ve been using it now for months.
The real time search field will be more competitive.
I just hope there isn’t a plethora of Real Time Search Engines/ apps and God knows what ready to break free….
Cuil launched a real time search feature too.
http://www.cuil...?q=barack+obama
I’ve been using both OneRiot and this Cuil one, but more out of curiosity and novelty rather than usefulness. So far, normal search results are just more useful.
How does it do it?
Collecta seems to be returning better results though. I did a search for “Nico Muhly” and OneRiot came up with three very anaemic results (one an article about Anthony & The Johnsons from March). Collecta pulls up Twitter and blog posts about Mr Muhly as to be expected – he was playing a festival in Dublin recently. So IMHO, OneRiot has got its distribution model down pat, but needs to work harder at the actual results.
Similarly, a search for “train strike” (for there was a big one in the UK yesterday) gives three results on OneRiot, of which only was was ‘relevant’, Collecta comes up with lots more.
Monetization is overrated. Go in the way of Linux. Code because you want; not for the money. How many of you who talk about monetization actually use Linux? I bet most of you are.