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Baidu announces Android OS alternative, confirming its mobile aspirations
At present time, Baidu's a desktop web browser / search engine based in China that's meant to mimic Chrome (though it's actually wrapped around IE code). The company, however, has its sights set on conquering the mobile front as well, introducing Baidu Yi OS at its annual get-together. The new platform is essentially a forked version of Android, which will provide a lot of the same functionality and services we're used to seeing from Google; Baidu, though, is adding a dash of flavor by throwing in its own bundle of apps -- such as native maps, reader, music, web apps, and even a program similar to Google Places -- as well as strong cloud integration for backups, storage and sharing. The new OS will likely be up against intense competition from Nokia, Alibaba, Xiaomi and Windows Phone Tango (amongst others), so the Chinese mobile space may get rather interesting in the coming years.
Baidu Browser tips hat to old Steve Jobs quote, copies Chrome's special sauce
Could this be a case of Baidu's browser in Chrome's clothing? The Wall Street Journal seems to think so and the Chinese company isn't exactly dismissing the KIRF claims. Announced back in April, the recently beta-released Baidu Browser brings a "sleek, stripped-down interface" eerily reminiscent of Google's web-surfing entry (or a likely fork of Chromium). The copycat similarities don't just end in the looks department: there's also an app store, fast-tab functionality and familiar menu icon placement. In its defense, the company claims its 30,000 plus free app offerings, in addition to China-specific entertainment features are enough to set it apart. Sure, this may seem like a case of the Asian search giant that doth protest too much, but it's the company's desire to drive traffic to its own engine that has us seeing Google. [Thanks, Hardy]
China's Baidu licenses music from major US record labels for streaming and downloads
In a move suggesting they might be ready to accept the realities of the internet era, major US record labels have reached a deal with Chinese search engine company Baidu. The agreement between the search giant and One-Stop China, a joint venture of Universal, Warner and Sony BMG, will result in licensed tracks popping up in searches instead of pirated ones and resolve years of legal wrangling between the two sides. Baidu launched its ting! social music service earlier this year with support from local labels and EMI, while this new deal will see labels paid per-play, per-download and from advertising. Between this and the recent launch of Spotify in the US the cheap and easy fun of music piracy is slipping away rapidly, if record labels continue to act sensibly then illegal downloads will soon be limited to hipsters ironically cracking open vintage editions of Soulseek.
Microsoft, Baidu strike China search deal
When it wanted to increase its search market share in the US, Microsoft sought out a partnership, resulting in a Yahoo-branded engine with Bing-flavored results. So, it seems natural that the company would look for a similar deal in China, the world's largest market, where the company only manages a presence of around one-percent of search. This time, however, Microsoft's managed a deal with the number one search engine, Baidu, which currently lays claim to three-quarters of the Chinese market -- far greater than Google's 20-percent or so. Baidu and MS announced a deal this week that will put Redmond in charge of English searches on the site. No money changed hands with the deal -- Baidu gets advertising revenue, Microsoft gets a larger slice of China's search pie, and we get an excuse to do an image search for Steve Ballmer on a Chinese search engine.
Baidu planning mobile OS?
Baidu's CEO Robin Li hinted that China's largest search engine may be planning a lightweight mobile OS for smartphones and tablets. Hot on the heels of retreating Google, Baidu currently enjoys 75 percent of China's web search revenue to Google's 16 and may well be pressing in the OS domain as well. The OS concept will center on the search box -- or Baidu Box -- with the end goal seeing it become the sole interface on a mobile device. Mr. Li further stated his hope would be to see that interface up and running on the device within a second of boot up. While this OS will apparently be search-centric, its other features will focus on social media and other online content. Of course, this is a three to five year plan, so we can definitely expect hardware advances and system advances to help make this lofty dream into a reality.
