SearchCap: The Day In Search, January 8, 2008

Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web.

From Search Engine Land:

• Results Are In For The 2007 Search Blogs Awards
  The voting for the best search blogs of 2007 began December 28th. Loren Baker of Search Engine Journal held their annual search blog awards and after two days of posting the results, all the results are finally in. We are proud to have won in three categories, best search news…
• 10 Simple Steps To Social Media Success In 2008
  It’s no secret that social media should be an integral part of your online marketing strategy. Creating viral content and promoting it is only a fraction of the equation. You must also strengthen your online footprint and become part of the network. Trying to figure out where to start…
• New Year’s Resolutions For Your PPC Campaigns
  At the beginning of every year, many people take stock of the last year, their accomplishments, and plan for the upcoming year. PPC campaigns also have a life of their own. From creation to optimization to reaching your goals to more optimization; PPC campaigns have their own life which…
• Sony In Video Deal With Google & Viacom Deals With Five Competing Online Video Providers
  Sony has announced a deal to provide Google’s YouTube five-minute clips of some of their most popular TV shows. Some of those shows include “Married With Children” and “Newsradio,” but they plan on adding more shows and even original content in the future. Viacom has agreed to provide videos for…
• Yahoo’s Yang Outlines Vision For An Integrated, Open Yahoo 2.0
  Yahoo’s Jerry Yang took the stage at CES yesterday to offer a vision for the company’s future as a more integrated, open platform and “starting point” for consumers on the internet. Much of the news surrounding Yahoo yesterday was about the new mobile application Go 3.0 and related widget platform…
• Google & YouTube TVs Powered By Panasonic
  Matsushita’s Panasonic, Google To Work On Internet-Ready TVs from SmartMoney reports Panasonic is working with Google to make TVs that display internet content. Matsushita Electric Industrial, the company behind Panasonic said the TVs will enable users to browse and watch YouTube videos from their TVs. The announcement was made at…
• Microsoft To Buy Fast Search For $1.23 Billion
  Microsoft Agrees to Buy Fast Search for $1.23 Billion from Bloomberg reports that Microsoft is buying FAST Search. The Norwegian search company, Fast Search & Transfer ASA, will be bought by Microsoft for 6.6 billion kroner or $1.23 billion. Microsoft will buy the company via the Oslo Stock Exchange, share…
• SMX West Early Bird Price Expires Friday
  Register today to get your ticket to the “must-attend” interactive and search marketing event of the year and save $400. Search Marketing Expo – SMX West will deliver… – Superior content – 3 days, 5 tracks and more than 50 sessions – Hands-on tactical solutions that will make you a…

Search News From Around The Web:

Applications & Portal Features

• Why FeedDemon is Better Than Google Reader and Bloglines, Digital Inspiration

Business Issues

• Bombshell: Google and Facebook Join DataPortability.org, Read/Write Web
• Facebook: Zango Adware Violates Terms, Red Herring
• Google.com in India DNS Hijacked Last Night?, Search Engine Roundtable
• Zix Extends Deal With Google’s Postini, Forbes

Local, Maps & Mobile

• Google Inks PPC Deal with ReachLocal for SMBs, Search Engine Watch Blog
• Local Search Offers Consumers Control, WebProNews
• Navigation Gadget Tricks with Google Earth 4, Google Earth Blog
• WebVisible-Nielsen Local Search Report Available, Screenwerk

Link Building

• How Long Does it Take to Get into DMOZ?, Search Engine Roundtable
• Is Your Linkbait Gimmicky?, Performancing.com

Paid Search & Contextual

• SemGeek Listed On Clix Marketing’s Top PPC Blogs, SEM Geek
• Top 5 PPC Developments That Made News in 2007, PPC Hero
• AdWords Downtime: January 12, 10am-2pm PST, AdWords API Blog
• AuctionAds moves to ShoppingAds!, MediaWhiz Blog
• Context Matters – Those Microsoft Videos In Context, Mel Carson
• The AdWords Content Network – Better Than Ever, PPC Discussions
• What We Did to Make it Work: 3 Account Management Achievements in 2007, PPC Hero

Searching

• An Unfulfilled Wishlist, Google Operating System
• Displaying the most relevant refinements, Google Custom Search

SEM Industry

• A Special Thanks from SEOmoz, SEOmoz

SEO & SEM

• Determining the Value of an Organic Result, Shimon Sandler
• Diagrams That Can Help You Define the Proper Anchor Text of Internal Links, SEOmoz
• Blackhat Technique To Hide Your Affiliate Code Behind An Image/Video, SEMSpot
• CSS Image Replacement, Brisbane SEO Blog
• Google Does Read Flash Text – Optimize It!, News.com
• Google Downgrades More Site’s Visible Toolbar PageRank Scores?, Search Engine Roundtable
• Google Testing Local Results At Top Right Position, Above Ads, Search Engine Roundtable
• Long Tail Queries Ruling Google? Supplemental Index Ranking As Main Index Results in Google, Search Engine Roundtable
• MSN Talks Webmaster Tools, WebProNews
• PPC v Organic, David Naylor
• The SEO Success Pyramid, Small Business SEM

Social Media

• Avoiding Information and Conversation Overload from Social Media, Search Engine Guide
• Innovation is Fueling the User Revolution, Reuters
• Interview with "Gotta Digg" Girl, Kina Grannis, ViperChill
• Is Social Media Traffic Worth 1 Cent Per Visitor?, SEO Book
• The Digg auto bury algorithm has changed, BlogStorm

Video, Music & Image Search

• Sony To Provide Content To YouTube, SmartMoney
• Viacom makes videos available online, Reuters

Web Analytics

• 2008 Google Analytics Resolutions, Analytics Talk

Other Items

• Democrat Barack Obama: 2008 Presidential Candidates & Online Marketing Strategies, Search Marketing Gurus
• The flow of information at the Googleplex, Official Google Blog
• Vote for the features that matter most, Official Google Checkout Blog
• Yahoo names best UK websites, The Guardian

Last 20 Hot Items From Sphinn, Our Social News Sharing Site:

• Search Wikia: Not Even A Remote Threat To Google
• Rand Fishkin : Most Giving Search Blogger
• Votes: What’s the secret sauce?
• Q&A With TheNanny612
• A Quick Introduction to Twitter for Bloggers
• The SEO Success Pyramid
• More Crap From Mainstream Media This Time Gene Marks at MSNBC
• Tips to Avoid Foggy Blogging and Scrambling for Topics
• Best Search Conference Coverage of 2007 = Search Engine Roundtable
• SEO by the SEA : Best Search Engine Research Blog of 2007
• It’s Magic: Content Creation and Link Building While You’re Away
• The Art of Flattering: Social Media Marketing How To
• Sphinn Wins Best Search Engine Community/Forum of 2007
• How To PiggyBack Off Authority Sites For Tier 1 Keywords
• Do You Have The Patience? Reputation Management Isn’t a Quick Fix
• Dosh Dosh : Breakout Blog of 2007
• Congrats to Marty. 100 Sphinns ‘Gone Hot’
• Some Blackhat Math: How to Predict Your Profit
• 11 Essential Tips to Writing the Ultimate Tutorial
• Announcing The 2007 Rubber Chicken Award Winner
• Sphinn Needs A Ho-Hum Button
• Social Bookmarking Submission Tools
• A Guide to Breaking Into the Technorati Top 100
• Don’t Blame Google For Your Own Linking Failures
• Brushing Off Blogrush