We have stopped saying ‘Search Engine’ long ago. At-least in the last decade, it’s been just ‘Google’. But, the question is will their world dominance last over the next 3 decades? Well, maybe not. Larry and Sergey recently sold their shares currently worth $4.4 billion (even resulting in a lack of dilution of control)*

Social Media, once highly dominated by Facebook – broke up into customised networks based on different needs, positioning and identities – Twitter, LinkedIn and even Instagram**. So the question is, will Search eventually breakup into customised platforms based on different needs, positioning and identities?

I believe technology firms are already beginning to disrupt this hyper-dominated Search Space. For example: AutoWeb, the fast-growing search engine designed to help car shoppers find and choose the right vehicle based on specific and intuitive search criteria, has reached over one million monthly new-car shopping searches, marking a tenfold increase in searches compared to Q4 year over year.

AutoWeb helps car shoppers make informed and budget-conscious decisions with its consumer-facing vehicle search engine and exclusive editorial content. Their search engine functionality is designed to simplify the search experience for a car shopper looking to purchase a new vehicle. The company serves relevant automotive ads across a select network of vehicle-related websites and apps, generating high-intent consumer traffic.

“Our search volume’s remarkable growth confirms the high-quality search traffic we are able to aggregate and provide to our advertising partners and move the needle for their businesses. Everybody wins,” said CEO Matias de Tezanos

Maybe, just maybe – a single search engine will not be a one stop shop any more. We might demand a customised experience and quickly adopt different engines for different needs. Afterall, don’t we all have that little-soft-spot for personalisation?

* Based on the article reported by the Financial Times: http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/dedaa524-b3d3-11e4-a6c1-00144feab7de.html#axzz3URlYlac4

** Based on the article reported by Social Times: http://www.adweek.com/socialtimes/largest-social-networks-worldwide/504044