Google joins rush to provide local content
By Michael Liedtke
Associated Press
SAN FRANCISCO — Online search engine leader Google Inc. is introducing a new system designed to make it easier for people to find things closer to their homes, paving the way for the company to make more money selling ads to small businesses.
The new algorithmic formulas, scheduled to begin working today, will allow Google to display more local information in response to search requests that include a ZIP code or a city's name.
Google says these geographic queries are now more likely to generate phone numbers and specific addresses on its main results page. In many cases, Google also will display an icon of a compass that can be clicked upon to open another page containing a detailed map and directions to the location.
Web surfers who want a broader selection of paro-chial information will be encouraged to visit a new gateway, local.google.com.
"Google's goal is to connect searchers with the information they need whether it's halfway around the world or in their neighborhood," said company co-founder Sergey Brin.
With the new features, Google is joining an accelerating push to become more local in search. Last week, Yahoo! Inc. introduced a similar provincial tool, called SmartView, and Verizon Communications recently overhauled its SuperPages.com site to deliver more useful local results.
Mountain View, Calif.-based Google believes it will have a major advantage over its other rivals — the Internet's biggest index, consisting of 4.3 billion Web pages.
