Post: #1

First let me just explain..this isn't my idea. So I have no concern at all if you want to rip it apart. Go nuts if you want to. If you think it's good, it doesn't bother me at all either.

I just wanted some input from the pretty smart dudes that hang out here.

Basically this guy is going to start an internet search engine in Eastern Europe, with a base of operations in the Ukraine. He says that with cheap labor it will be no problem and he already found the programmers[/align]. He says it is an advanced algorithm and totally encrypted which should give it an edge over google, yahoo and the like. Finally he says he is going to advertise it in local papers and the internet and also rely on word of mouth growth.

That's basically it.

Post: #2

Just because the search is encrypted doesn't mean people will pay money to use his search engine. As for ad revenues they are hit or miss and really depend on traffic. So, my question is how does your friend expect to fund this venture and to develop a sustainable revenue generation long-term?

Post: #3

(06-12-2016 06:07 PM)TripleG Wrote:  Just because the search is encrypted doesn't mean people will pay money to use his search engine. As for ad revenues they are hit or miss and really depend on traffic. So, my question is how does your friend expect to fund this venture and to develop a sustainable revenue generation long-term?

He is self financing it from savings. I guess he will sell advertising just like other search engines.

Post: #4

What's the problem? Sounds great.
Maybe not if he needs YOUR money unless you have a high ability to absorb risk.

Post: #5

The concept of a local or regional based search engine is nothing new. Baidu.

People can already use proxies and the like for casual browsing.

Paranoid people aren't going to switch search engines just because you say it's more secure.

The engine would have to sell itself with a better angle.

No way in hell i'd hand money over to some EE dude asking for startup capital on this.

Post: #6

There is no where near the amount of detail that is needed in order to make even the most rudimentary assessment.

It could be a roaring success or a complete failure. All we have here is thats its a search engine and where the programmers are located. There are dozens of factors at play, and that is ignoring the intangibles about the entrepreneur himself.

Post: #7

1. Idea about search engine is stupid
2. Cheap labor in Ukraine -is that what can be used -have a clients in UK (create web cites, mobile apps, etc - IT, QA), use developers and QA in Ukraine

Post: #8

Clickbait thread title.

Post: #9

(06-13-2016 05:39 AM)el conquistador Wrote:  Clickbait thread title.

He's not asking for any money. Thankfully. I wouldn't invest in it.

Post: #10

(06-12-2016 11:30 PM)GlobalMan Wrote:  There is no where near the amount of detail that is needed in order to make even the most rudimentary assessment.

It could be a roaring success or a complete failure. All we have here is thats its a search engine and where the programmers are located. There are dozens of factors at play, and that is ignoring the intangibles about the entrepreneur himself.

Please understand that I can't go into too much detail. I can't be 100% sure that he doesn't visit this site or has a friend that does. If I post a detailed description of every thing he's doing, he will know exactly who leaked his information. He's not a friend, more like an acquaintance but that's a shitty thing to do to anyone.

Post: #11

The idea of competing with google sounds crazy. On top of that, there's also the search engine Yandex which is very popular in Russia and I think Ukraine and Belarus. This being said, many succesful ventures sound ludicrous at the start and I'm sure if your friend is serious about this he must have a secret plan of some sort.

Post: #12

Sounds like DuckDuckGo, but based in EE. I like DDG for the fact that it doesn't save your search, but oftentimes I find myself having to use google because google is just better at finding shit. "Advanced algorithm" and "totally encrypted" sound like marketing BS to me, because google searches are also "totally encrypted" by internet standards (end to end SSL encryption), unless you mean don't track you at all like DDG.

Demand for alternatives to the big tech products rise as trust in mega corporations and governments fall. Getting people to switch from google to a new search engine is going to be a monster though. People will not switch from a product they use every day and a brand that they recognize to a similar product unless the product is cheaper or significantly higher quality. Google is already free and I doubt the new search engine would be comparable in quality. I would say a search engine is more viable as a "I believe in privacy/anonymity for the people and I want to give it to them" as opposed to "I want to make an easy profit from an online business"

Post: #13

A search engine that somehow guarantees anonymity of the actual search I perform? This could be a goldmine. Think of the possibilities; I’m a (seemingly) normal guy in my 20’s but I want better luck with women. I search “game AND dating,” leading me to this site and others. 10 years later I am happily married to a lovely woman of anything-other-than-American-decent. We even have kids. I run for political office or am being evaluated for a senior-level corporate role and someone decides to use this info against me.

If someone can match search engine activity to my person, game over (or unnecessarily more difficult). The fallout could be awful.

OK, so that’s just dating. Take an activity like looking up symptoms on how I am feeling today. Introduce a life insurance company having access to this (whether legally or not), and the prospects get frightening real fast. A future letter to the beneficiaries of my life insurance policy could read: ‘Thank you for your inquiry into the LI Policy your loved one paid into for the last 10 years. We regret to inform you that evidence indicates your deceased loved one searched terms associated with a diagnosis of Pancreatic Cancer 6 months before we underwrote his policy. While we are aware that your loved one was not diagnosed until 6 months ago, We have determined that your loved one attempted to obtain this policy through fraudulent means. Of course, you have the right to contest this decision; Should you wish to do so, we encourage you to seek legal assistance.

Cha-ching!! Oh, the Insurance company spent $4million in an off-balance sheet transaction to get that info on you and 100k other people? Barely a rounding error compared to what they save in payouts they don’t have to make or lower settlements.

Now, are there already ways to keep your searches anonymous? Of course. The challenge is that for the vast majority of users these options are far too technical to execute once, much less do so on a regular basis. Whether it’s a less-than user-friendly UI (user interface) or a complex set of commands a user has to remember to first get to a secure platform and then do the search… It’s just too much for the average user. Heck, even Internet Explorer has ‘Control-Shift-P’ for an ‘in-private’ browser but does anyone really believe Microsoft doesn’t keep some identifying information? If ‘yes,’ PM me and I have a once in a lifetime opportunity with my uncle who happens to be a deposed Nigerian dictator.

At least one rather large company is spending money on matching a user with their search data. Google 'Microsoft AND illness search.'

As an example of a well thought out platform developed from the ground up with security and privacy inherent to the platform (think, the user doesn’t need to change a well-established habit in any way), check out Safe Circle. While they were incredibly late to the mobile phone world, these guys have built a very successful offering that is used by a lot of people.

Telegram is another example of a successful platform developed ‘late,’ but that addresses a real need.

Post: #14

It's a very good idea. Google isn't a good search engine in most countries. A lot of the results are in English and you would need to translate them.