Commentary: Brand recognition gives AltaVista time to maneuver
AltaVista still represents a tremendous brand that is well known on the Internet and has a good reputation, giving it time to charter a course of action.
By Michal Halama, Gartner Analyst The best thing AltaVista has going for it is the obvious.
AltaVista still represents a tremendous brand that is well known on the Internet and has a good and sound reputation. The search engine still works and is widely used.
The company's reputation has not suffered damage except among those--comparatively few--who have tried to get the free ISP service and were disappointed. Few such users will likely switch from a search engine that gets them results because an associated venture failed--that would be like iMac users deserting Apple because the Newton did not do all the company promised.
Certainly, AltaVista needs to improve as a search engine to keep up with other developing services that are also free. However, Gartner believes that AltaVista is not that far behind in user perception.
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For now, the AltaVista brand has real financial value, so CMGI, which owns a majority stake, may well be tempted to sell it. However, that could undermine its Internet strategy. CMGI would be hard pressed to buy or build anything with as much recognition as AltaVista has.
(For related commentary on registering your site with top search engines, see TechRepublic.com--free registration required.)
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