Real-time search – along with Twitter’s bank account – may be about to receive a couple of big boosts. A new report indicates that both Google and Microsoft are interested in obtaining access to all of the info Twitter can serve up.
Kara Swisher wrote earlier this morning, “Twitter is in advanced talks . . . about striking data-mining deals, in which the companies would license a full feed from the microblogging service that could then be integrated into the results of their competing search engines.”
This seems like a rather natural move considering that, earlier this month, Google began to let searchers limit their results to content less than one hour old. What’s more, about four months ago, Bing started showing certain celebrities’ recent tweets when people searched for their names in conjunction with the word “Twitter.”
Then here’s an important note relating to the business side of things: any deals would be non-exclusive, which on the one hand precludes a bidding war and definite win for one search engine. On the other, it leaves Twitter free to receive money from both sides. Plus Yahoo could jump in at some point.
Don’t bet your iPhone on anything getting accomplished even where Google and Microsoft are concerned, however. Swisher wrote, “Sources said it is also possible that no agreement would be reached with either company.”
