What does this acquisition mean for content publishers?
Zagat Survey was a first of its kind.
In 1979, Tim and Nina Zagat established the company to provide a collection of ratings of restaurants by the diners who eat at them.
Throughout the years, Zagat expanded to rate anything local, from hotels and nightlife to theaters and airlines.
Now, Google has acquired Zagat and as an article from Search Engine Land stated, “Google is a content publisher now and the content that Zagat brings arguably closes the gap between Google Places and Yelp.”
The article also discussed how Zagat’s subscription-based online model saw some success, but it’s not been able to stand out against competitors like Yelp.
One can assume that the Zagat content will be loaded into Google Places so that the section can build out its local revues.
The founders of Zagat released a statement on Zagat.com, saying, “Going forward, we will remain active in the business as co-Chairs, helping to ensure that the combination of Zagat’s and Google’s assets and capabilities will maximize our product quality and growth.”
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Greg Sterling of Search Engine Land spoke with Google’s Marissa Mayer and Tim Zagat about the acquisition. He reported that “Google will continue to publish the guides and maintain the subscription product.
Luther Lowe, Business Outreach and Public Affairs at Yelp, responded to the acquisition on Twitter by tweeting, “All of the restaurant reviews on Yelp could fill 16,894 Zagat guides, and only 26% of businesses reviewed on Yelp are restaurants. Congrats?”
Is content acquisition going to be a trend for Google?
John Battelle of Searchblog released wrote about Google’s acquisition of Zagat in a recent article. He believes this may be a trend worth watching, even though it seems Google wouldn’t want to offend content producers that the search engine relies on.
“Google is walking a thin line here – media partners are critical to its success, but if its seen as favoring its “owned and operated” content over those who operate in the open or independent web, well, lines may be redrawn in the media business.”
What do you think of Google’s new acquisition? Will publishing content be a new trend for Google, or is it just an attempt to secure more viewership in the local atmosphere? I’d love to read your thoughts in the comments.
