Go2Net Relaunches MetaCrawler, Extends Metasearch Technologies to
Music, Auctions, and International Markets
SEATTLE, Jan. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- Go2Net, Inc. (Nasdaq: GNET), a network of branded, technology- and community-driven
Web sites ( go2net.com ), today introduced a new version of MetaCrawler, the Internet's leading metasearch service,
available at ( metacrawler.com ).
In addition to a new user interface and navigation scheme, MetaCrawler now provides users with the ability to simultaneously search
many of the Internet's leading music and auction databases, extending Go2Net's core metasearch technologies to two of the Internet's
most popular categories. At a time when international usage of the Go2Net Network, and the Internet as a whole, is rapidly
increasing, the new MetaCrawler also enables users to customize their searches to return results from specifically requested countries.
Initially, this includes more than 25 nations in North America, Europe, South America, Asia, Africa, and Australia.
"Today's relaunch incorporates a significant series of improvements to MetaCrawler, which has been dedicated, since its inception, to
providing Internet users with access to the most effective and comprehensive search resources available," said Russell C. Horowitz,
Go2Net Chief Executive Officer. "As the Internet continues its rapid expansion and diversification, we will continue to extend our
core technologies to more effectively search more of the Internet, as well as its most popular individual categories."
-- In the music category, MetaCrawler's Audio/MP3 Search conducts
metasearches of several online music partners, including Astraweb,
Gigabeat, AudioGalaxy, and MP3 Board.
-- For its auctions metasearch, Go2Net is collaborating with
AuctionRover.com to provide MetaCrawler users with a comprehensive,
categorized and searchable index of more than 35 leading auction sites
-- such as eBay, Yahoo!, Amazon.com, and MSN, among many others.
Go2Net also announced today that it has added the search engine Google to its roster of search engines, which it queries to obtain
search results. With MetaCrawler and Dogpile ( dogpile.com ), which Go2Net acquired in 1999, Go2Net is home to the
Internet's two most popular metasearch services.
A July 1999 study by Nature magazine and the NEC Research Institute found that individual search engines are "increasingly falling
behind" in their efforts to index the Web and that "a substantial improvement in Web coverage can be obtained using metasearch
engines, such as MetaCrawler." MetaCrawler has received numerous industry awards and citations, including PC Magazine's Editor's
Choice for metasearch as well as being selected as one of the 'Top 100 Web sites in the World' by the same publication.
About Go2Net, Inc.
Go2Net ( go2net.com ) is a network of branded, technology- and community-driven Web sites focused on the categories
of personal finance; search and directory; commerce and business services; and multi-player games. The company's Go2Net Labs
division develops Web-related software and innovative technologies to enhance the features and functionality of the Go2Net
Network's sites and for licensing to other Internet companies. The Go2Net Network is home to many of the Internet's leading vertical
brands, including: Silicon Investor in the personal finance category; Go2Net.com, MetaCrawler, Dogpile, and 100hot in the area of
search and directory; HyperMart, Virtual Avenue, FreeYellow.com, Authorize.Net, Haggle Online, and WebMarket in the
commerce and business services segment; and PlaySite in the area of multi-player games.
This announcement contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including those relating to the company's
ability to grow its user and advertiser base. Actual results may differ materially from the results predicted and reported results should
not be considered as an indication of future performance. The potential risks and uncertainties include, among others, the company's
limited operating history, the competitive environment in which the company competes, the early stage of the Web as an advertising
and electronic commerce medium, the company's dependence on advertising and sponsorship revenues, the company's dependence
on strategic relationships to drive traffic to its Web sites, consumer acceptance of the company's new products and services, the
company's ability to develop and integrate new technologies and services into its existing services, and the increased use of the Web
for commerce. More information about the potential factors that could affect the company's business and financial results is included
in the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 1999, which is on file with the Securities and
Exchange Commission. |
