Google buys social. Aardvark network

Aardvark is a social search that allows the user to ask a question on any topic and address it to a “competent” user of the social network and, accordingly, get a competent answer. Addressing the question to the right person happens automatically, based on his interests, friends, previous answers, etc. (the exact algorithm of the engine is unknown). A question can be asked both directly on the site, and by e-mail, twitter, and various IM applications.

This miracle is now owned by Google. Details of the transaction were not announced, but they say that the amount of the purchase was at least $ 50 million. By the way, among the founders of Aardvark (in 2007) there were two former employees of Google, and the creation of the project cost 6 million.

The purchase of Aardvark happened just a day after the launch of Buzz (an element of the social network in the Gmail mail service) and is regarded by many as a step in the fight against twitter.
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This is already the sixth Google acquisition since September of 2009, but one of the cheapest.

What is interesting is how this will affect Google’s policy regarding Google Answers.