Microsoft's big bid for Yahoo

In Yahoo, Microsoft saw a way to make gains in the online realm. But after all the entreaties and ultimatums, the software giant wasn't able to get its way, and Yahoo remains an independent company. Tune in here for the latest.

Latest coverage: What Yahoo has, Microsoft wants, but Yahoo continues to play hard to get. Even as talks start, stop, and sputter, the two companies still face a formidable foe in Google--and many questions about what they'll do next.

Google spotlights customized search differences

Google has begun showing details about how it customizes search results for location and search history.
(Credit: Google)













Google's search engine gives different responses depending on the location of a person and various other factors. On Wednesday, the company said, it will show searchers exactly what those differences are.

"Today, we're rolling out a new feature in Google Web Search that will help you better understand how your search results are already customized," said Rachel Garb, a Google product manager, in the blog post. A message will appear above the search results telling how searches were customized and offering a link to share more details.

Specifically, the message will show how search changed from three customization possibilities:

• Location, as judged by an approximate real-world city based on a user's Internet Protocol address or by address information stored in a user's Google account.

• Recent searches. Google pays attention to previous search queries because they can provide context Google can use to interpret the search. "We keep the most recent query on your browser for a limited time. After that, the information is removed from your browser and disappears immediately if you close your browser," Garb said.

• Search history. For users who have Web History enabled (users must explicitly enable it), Google also factors in a longer history of searches. "One important note about Web History: it belongs to you and you have complete control over it," Garb said. "You can remove specific items or pause the service at any time. And if there's a particular search that you'd rather not have personalized based on your Web History, you can also just temporarily sign out of your Google Account."

Google developing VC arm

Google is revisiting efforts to create a venture capital arm, according to a report on The Wall Street Journal's Web site Wednesday night.

Google senior VP David Drummond is expected to lead the effort, according to people who were briefed on the discussions. The group has also hired former entrepreneur William Maris, 33, to help set up the venture, the newspaper reported.

The search engine has played with the idea before, and the plans could still fall through.

If successful, the new venture would put Google--a company better known for buying companies than investing in them--in the more-formal role of helping get start-ups off the ground. Other Silicon Valley companies with extensive VC track records include Intel, Hewlett-Packard, and Motorola, among others.

The move comes at a tough time for overall venture capital investing. A report from Dow Jones VentureSource earlier this month stated that VC investments dropped 12 percent in the second quarter compared with the same period a year ago, with $6.64 billion put into 602 deals--the lowest quarterly deal count in three years.

More venture firms found themselves funneling money to support later-stage companies at the expense of companies seeking first-time funding. The amount of money sunk into start-ups seeking first-round funds dropped by 12 percent to $1.6 billion in the second quarter. Meanwhile, later-stage deals grew by 14 percent to $3.1 billion because those companies in particular had fewer opportunities to go public. No venture-backed company went public in the second quarter.