16 Jul 2008 07:00
Russia's Largest Portal Selects blinkx to Power Video Search
Top Russian Internet brand, Rambler, signs Red Label deal with blinkx
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIF. - JULY 16, 2008 - blinkx, the world's largest and most advanced video search engine, today announced that it has inked a Red Label agreement with Rambler (www.rambler.ru), a leading Russian Internet portal. Rambler has selected blinkx to power its video search, providing users with easy, efficient access to an index of over 3 million Russian language video clips. Under the terms of the agreement, revenue from advertising related to the project will be shared between Rambler and blinkx.
eMarketer predicts that by the end of 2008, Russia will be the second largest Internet market in Europe, with more than 40 million Internet users (eMarketer, February 2008). Rambler Media makes up a significant segment of the market, having developed some of Russia's top Internet brands. In April 2008, Rambler Media's Web sites generated over two billion page views, establishing Rambler as one of the biggest names in the Russian online community. Its main property, Rambler.ru, combines search and navigation functions with the latest in media to bring the Russian-speaking consumer audience the best in content. Rambler's continuously updated video index will be completely searchable by blinkx as a result of the Red Label deal. blinkx's expert video search technology includes language agnostic speech recognition and visual analysis software, producing the most accurate, relevant results possible.
"Russia is one of the largest, fastest growing Internet markets in Europe, and we're delighted to partner with one of the country's most prominent media companies," said Suranga Chandratillake, founder and CEO, blinkx. "It's exciting to be part of this dynamic industry and we plan to expand blinkx's presence even further globally."
"We've always been committed to offering the Russian community the best user experience possible," said Anna Znamenskaya, chief sales & partnership officer. "We're thrilled to be entering into a partnership with blinkx, a company that provides the best in video search technology. Our users will now be able to find all their favorite Russian language clips faster and more accurately than ever before."
As the pioneer in video search technology, blinkx has built a reputation as the smartest way to search new forms of online content such as video. With more than 350 partners and 26 million hours of indexed video and audio content, including favorite TV moments, news clips, short documentaries, music videos, video blogs and more, blinkx uses advanced speech-recognition technology to deliver results that are more accurate and reliable than standard metadata-based keyword searches.
About blinkx
blinkx plc (LSE AIM: BLNX) is the world's largest and most advanced video search engine. Today, blinkx has indexed more than 26 million hours of audio, video, viral and TV content, and made it fully searchable and available on demand. blinkx's founders set out to solve a significant challenge - as TV and user-generated content on the Web explode, keyword-based search technologies only scratch the surface. blinkx's patented search technologies listen to - and even see - the Web, helping users enjoy a breadth and accuracy of search results not available elsewhere. In addition, blinkx powers the video search for many of the world's most frequented sites. blinkx is based in San Francisco and London. More information is available at www.blinkx.com.
About Rambler Media
Rambler Media is an internet media and services group which operates or has interests in leading Russian language internet brands including the Russian internet homepage and search engine 'Rambler.ru', on-line newspaper 'Lenta.ru', product comparison website 'Price.ru', internet catalogue and navigation system 'Top 100', instant messaging service 'Rambler-ICQ', digital advertising agency 'Index20' and contextual advertising company 'Begun'. Rambler Media's shares are traded on AIM, the junior market of the London Stock Exchange under the symbol 'RMG'. For more information on Rambler Media, visit our corporate website at www.ramblermedia.com.
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