:IT-Analysis: Google on Linux scoops mega-deal with Virgin
IT-Analysis: Google on Linux scoops mega-deal with Virgin Nov 26, 1999, 13 :37 UTC (1 Talkback[s]) (6205 reads) (Other stories by Jack of Hearts)
"In a deal that will most certainly boost the validity and
presence of the search engine Google, Virgin has just used it
to replace Excite as the search engine that powers the Virgin
super-site, Virgin.net. The site, which attracts around 15
million page impressions a month from a user base of
approximately 1 million, caters for a host of customer
requirements with its entertainment and leisure guide. And is
firmly recognised as quite a force in the UK marketplace."
"Quite why it has dropped a high-profile service like that
provided by Excite is unclear as no statements appear to have
been made about the deal. However, we are more than
prepared to speculate that it is simply because Google is an extremely powerful search facility.
It was apparently created by two Stanford graduates, allegedly in the William Gates building at
the University, who set about creating a search engine the returned decent results - rather
than the endless garbage returned by many of the facilities."
"With this end in mind the two of them developed a model that essentially guesstimates the
importance and relevance of pages by measuring the quantity and quality of the links - which
we have found returns incredibly useful results. The pair based the system on Linux, for
obvious reasons, and set about gaining some backing for the venture, which they finally
secured in the shape of a $25 million pay-out from the likes of Kleiner Perkins and Sequoia
Capital - two rival VC firms in Silicon Valley."
