European Search Engine Looks For Sale or Merger

UK-Based Gasta Search Engine Network Enters Into Sales / Merger Talks

The Gasta search network is a blended search that will deliver web results, news, videos, and images with one single keyword search, then lets users social bookmark search results in their own library. The Gasta search network extends its reach into Europe and USA, has search engines launched in South Africa, China, and Japan. Gasta is a European trademark and the Gasta search engine was last year's winner of the PWC award for innovation, it also holds one of the UK most valuable property domain holdings.

Belfast, Ireland (PRWEB) October 14, 2008 -- It was announced here today that the Belfast-based web 2.0 Search Engine Network Gasta is in talks with several companies for a possible sale or merger. A well established player in European, US, and Asian search, The Gasta.com search engine network currently consists of 450+ Domains, is translated into six languages, offers a contextualised ad system, powerful SEO options, keyword management tools, and full service administration to create, launch, and quickly deploy new search engines in emerging markets and geographical regions as needed.

Gasta has created a very easy to use back-end admin system that is designed for non technical use, within the admin you can add new keywords, manage ad campaigns, replicate advertising codes, and launch new search index's and directories in minutes, Gasta has developed its own text based contextualised ad system, InstantAdsTM and the keyword direct hit service SearchMatchTM allowing users to buy targeted keywords for the geographic region they do business in. As well as this there are many SEO options including InstantLinksTM the free link exchange system that publishes the main directory." We can launch new search engines in emerging regions very easily, with the rapid deployment platform we have developed" said Higgins. "We can launch in Poland and Malaysia very quickly and have been looking out for possible local partners on the ground in these regions".

While Gasta.com is well-established in the Search Industry, it has chosen to maintain a low profile and provided state of the art services to its visitors and advertisers. Christian Nielsen, owner of NielsenTech.com, an Internet consulting firm located in the US said he has used Gasta for many years. "Yes, I was submitting client sites to Gasta's system back as early as 1999 when we started doing SEO and web promotion. They have evolved over the years, and we have keep in contact due to their attitude of service and ethics. Most other firms in the US don't seem to know about them and that's been a competitive edge for us."

Gasta.com owner Francis Higgins believes that now is a 'good time' to transition the search engines network due to the convergence of web 2.0 technologies. Higgins said "We believe that we have created great distribution platform to easily explore and rapidly develop new and emerging regions. We have looked into the possibility of partnering with a mobile carrier to deliver local mobile search in which great opportunities are coming in the future, Gasta works well now on mobiles but we would need the expertise of the big carriers to make an impact and monetize the service.

We have worked hard over the past 12 years to improve the reach and the depth of the Gasta network. With the rapid deployment and white label solution we have developed we can quickly launch blended search engines that will bring up web results, videos, news, and images with one keyword. Our brand commands a high level of respect by those that are familiar with us and those that do some research will see our extensive digital footprint built up over the years that shows our quality and consistency and has established our brand's value in the search marketing industry."

Contacts
Francis Higgins
Comm Director Gasta Search Networks
bizz @ amiwired.com
+44(0)2890333748
Mob:+44(0)7816447363

Independent Film Quarterly Magazine

Independent Film Quarterly

by Tanya Irwin , Friday, September 19, 2008

I CONFESS, I'M addicted to magazines.  I can't go anywhere near a newsstand or bookstore without coming away with at least one.  So seeing a free pile of magazines sitting anywhere is practically like hitting the lottery -- or at least winning on a scratch-off ticket.

I was up in Traverse City, Mich. earlier this month at the Traverse City Film Festival hanging out with my "good friends" Madonna and Michael Moore when I spied a pile of IFQs sitting on a table in one of the theater lobbies. Score!

The cover is intriguing. A black and white photo of a female who looks like a cross between a young Deborah Harry and Nico is set against a pink background. The issue is billed as the "Cannes Special Edition."  Even though Danny Glover is the only name I recognized on the cover (I'll admit it, I like movies but I'm no art film aficionado) I figure maybe I'll know who some of the people are after reading about them. And maybe I'd learn something I didn't know from perusing the usual bourgeois entertainment zines.

As it turns out, the cover model is Emmanuelle Seigner, who appeared in "The Diving Bell and The Butterfly," which I have heard of.  She's married to legendary director Roman Polanski. Penned by Nicole Holland, the interview is Q&A style and while it's decently written and somewhat interesting, I couldn't help but cringe at some of the "questions." I use quote marks because in several cases they aren't so much questions as statements of fawning adoration. Obviously the interviewee is a big deal in the film industry, but the tone of the article struck me as unprofessional and amateurish.  I felt more like I was reading a high school newspaper than an internationally circulated magazine.

If that were the only such article in the 64-page magazine, I could give it a pass. But wait, there's more. We move on to another Q&A piece by Nicole  Holland, this time with Asia Argento, whose father, Dario Argento, is a big-deal director in Europe. I've never heard of either of them or their movies, but the four-page piece is much the same as the first piece.

Moving along, there's another three-page Q&A by Nicole Holland, this time with Cecile De France, another actress I've never heard of.  She was in a French movie with Gerard Depardieu. Finally, someone I have heard of. I'd been starting to feel seriously un-artsy fartsy.

The magazine describes itself on its Web site as "one of the fastest growing Film/Art & Society magazines featuring exclusive in-depth interviews with celebrated iconic figures in film, music and pop culture. IFQ invites  you to experience this avant-garde film and pop culture movement."  The  advertising statistics sheet states that the target audience includes "producers, actors, directors, musicians, artists, film distributors, record  labels, entertainment attorneys, dub houses, film labs, film festival directors, music festival directors, art festival directors, editors and the general public alike." I'm guessing they skew fairly young since the magazine has a profile on MySpace.

IFQ can be found in select Barnes & Nobles, Borders, Books-A-Million, on 3,000 newsstands nationwide and at domestic and international film, music and art  festivals and related events. It has controlled circulation mailings that  are sent to industry leaders, trade shows, music festivals, art festivals and film festivals, domestic and international.

Every article in the magazine is in Q&A style.  While I don't mind that formatting as an occasional alternative to the objective third-person narration, it becomes grating after a while.  Unless the person is a really big deal, I don't think it's necessary to preserve every single word they say.  Spare the reader the gory details and get to the point. Exercise your competence as a writer and spin a tale that draws me in.  Otherwise my take is that the writer is just being lazy or doesn't know how to write an actual story.  But maybe to the 20,000 readers of this magazine, all of these interviews ARE with big-deal people.  In which case, I guess all I can say is, "Enjoy."

MAG STATS
Published by: Disticor (Newsstand Distributor); Publisher and Editor in Chief: Stuart Alson
Frequency: Quarterly
Web site

Post your response to the public Magazine Rack blog.

See what others are saying on the Magazine Rack blog.
Tanya Irwin is Deputy Editor of MediaPost. She can be reached at tanya@mediapost.com.

Magazine Rack for Friday, September 19, 2008:
http://blogs.mediapost.com/magazine_rack/?p=526

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Oilmen Happy Over Conflicts Dividing Electric-Drive Vehicle Industry

PLUG-IN ELECTRIC CAR RACE GETS TENSE

Consumers can help pick the tomorrow's winners by completing the on-line "Join the Plug-In Revolution" survey.

PAPILLION, NE, April 17, 2008 - Electric sports car builder Tesla is suing electric luxury car builder Fisker, claiming the latter stole company trade secrets. GM and Toyota are sparing, directly and via surrogates over to the relative merits of their competing plug-in electric car strategies. The furor over California's supposed retreat on its Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) mandate continues to spiral with "conflict of interest" charges against one of its Air Resources Board members.

At stake is a rapidly evolving, multi-billion dollar global market for the next generation of electric cars, which use little or no petroleum, promising to reduce the nation's dependence on imported oil. Propelled by intensifying concerns over national security, climate change and resource depletion, carmakers large and small are racing to develop and market three classes of electric-drive vehicles: Plug-in Hybrids, Extended-Range Electric Vehicles and Battery Electric Vehicles.

Plug-in Hybrids are essentially internal combustion engine vehicles that offer electric-only driving ranges from 10-30 miles. Vehicles in this class will include the next generation Toyota Prius and Saturn VUE, both in development and slated to be available sometime around 2010.

Extended-Range Electric Vehicles are predominately electric cars with onboard internal combustion engine generators that recharge the large batteries, giving the vehicles significant range beyond that of their battery pack. This class includes the Chevy Volt, Fisker Karma and Tesla Whitestar, that latter two now locked in the clinches of a legal boxing match.

Battery Electric Vehicles are traditional, battery-only cars that are charged exclusively by an external electric power source such as the grid or a home owner's solar panels. These vehicles include the Think city and Nissan Denke, the former available for sale in Europe and the latter to appear in America sometime after 2010.

Fortunes and careers are being wagered in this high stakes gamble to become the environmental vehicle leader of the 21st Century. Who will win with which technology is yet to be seen. At last count, there are nearly 20 different electric car programs currently in development by manufacturers in North America, Europe and Asia.

The Plugin.EVWorld.Com (http://plugin.evworld.com) on-line survey is giving consumers the opportunity to express their preferences and concerns about the cars of the future. The survey takes only a minute to complete and those completing the survey will be rewarded by a FREE downloadable Thank You gift worth $10. To date, more than 1,100 people have completed the survey.

"Join the Plug-in Revolution" is sponsored by EV World (http://www.evworld.com).

On-line since 1998, EV World is recognized as one of the leading Internet information portals on sustainable electric-drive vehicle technology, public policy, investments and people. For further information, please contact us at 01 (402) 339.9877 US Central Time.

Contact Information:
Bill Moore
EV World.Com, Inc.
Editor in Chief
P.O. Box 461132
Papillion, NE
United States 68046
Voice: 402.339.9877