Rumors Swirl That Twitter is Buying Summize

Posted on July 8, 2008

Rumors are swirling that Twitter is buying the Summize search engine. See Techmeme for still more rumors about a possible acquisition. Twitter refers users directly to Summize at times - such as when its replies tab is not functioning.

A lot of Twitter users rely on the Twitter search engine to keep track of when their username is mentioned. Silicon Alley Insider says they don't know if the deal is true but that it sounds plausible.

The deal was first reported by English blogger Josh Chandler; Path 101 founder Charlie O'Donnell confirms the deal on his blog, but doesn't cite any sources. Meanwhile, a source close to the company tells us it's not true.

So we don't know what to believe, but it sounds plausible -- Summize's real-time Twitter search is a nice feature that Twitter doesn't have. And Summize has helped Twitter out in the past -- when Twitter's "replies" feature went dead a few weeks ago, Twitter officially recommended using Summize as a quick fix.

One way for Twitter to add the features users is want is to simply buy the third-party apps they like. Twitter's uptime issues have continued this summer so much so that the Fail Whale image that appears when Twitter is struggling has become a popular icon and Internet meme of its own. ReadWriteWeb notes that Twitter's uptime issues has cynics concerned that a Twitter-Summize deal might mean Twitter will now break Summize. That's pretty cynical but it's easy to see why people might worry about it.