????埃里克?施密特稱：蘋果公司（Apple）iPhone 4S上所謂的個人助理應用程序Siri將使搜索的面貌煥然一新。在他做出這番表態之前，谷歌（Google）似乎還可以高枕無憂。如今網絡世界飛速擴張，要在網絡中遨游，難免令人望洋興嘆，大家都希望有一種最可信賴的搜索方式。正是谷歌推出了搜索框，成為彌合這兩者之間鴻溝的橋梁。這個搜索框久經考驗，可靠耐用。而Siri的出現卻開始威脅到它的地位。有些人稱，谷歌應該對此表示關切。其他人則反應過度，將Siri稱為“谷歌殺手”，這也在預料之中。

????上周，針對參議院小組委員會對谷歌在搜索行業的壟斷問題調查，作為谷歌前任首席執行官和現任董事長的施密特發表了回應。過去幾年間，他已從一位經驗豐富、成就卓著的首席執行官淪為了一門信口開河的大炮，多數時間都在收回、解釋自己從前的一些言論；當然，有時候他也只能一笑了之。因此，他最近引述了一些評論人士的言論，稱蘋果的Siri將成為谷歌的競爭對手，并暗示Siri可能會是搜索領域崛起的新勢力，這一做法馬上招來了一片質疑之聲。有些人認為，施密特不過是有意借此淡化谷歌的搜索壟斷地位。另一些人則指出，Siri默認的搜索引擎其實就是谷歌。

????但是，面對蘋果公司咄咄逼人的攻勢，谷歌如何才能坐穩寡頭的位置？事實是：搜索行業正處于劇烈變革的早期。這一點雖然同樣富有戲劇性，但并非確鑿無疑。未來的搜索將會更價接近如今的Siri，而不是眼下的谷歌——也就是說，它將會帶有更多直觀的人工智能的意味。蘋果和谷歌——也許還有微軟（Microsoft）——將在創造這一未來上扮演關鍵角色。這意味著，現在還在對谷歌是否是寡頭感到憂心忡忡實屬不合時宜。

????實際上，谷歌甚至已不能再算作是搜索寡頭了。目前它控制著約三分之二的搜索市場。在類似餐飲搜索Yelp，旅游搜索Kayak和實時聊天搜索Twitter等專業化搜索興起前，這個數字要更為可觀。據說谷歌還擁有97%的移動搜索市場。但是，這一統計再次忽略了一個事實：大多數人是通過應用程序而非瀏覽器訪問移動網絡的。

????在某種程度上，搜索的核心一直就幫助我們在網絡上找到自己需要的信息。搜索出現之前，就有Yahoo和Excite這樣的索引目錄。隨后，AltaVista和Inktomi基于簡單的搜索框建立了搜索引擎，接著谷歌橫空出世、一統江湖。它首先推出了更好的搜索框，然后又不斷對其進行改進。谷歌對搜索界的影響并不是一場突發性的革命，而是一種漸進式的改進。只有在回顧歷史時，谷歌對搜索領域的影響顯得深遠。

????It sounded pretty good until Eric Schmidt said it: Siri, the so-called personal assistant app on Apple's iPhone 4S, is the new face of search. Siri is threatening to sideline the tried-and-true search box that Google turned into a cross between a wishing well and the most trusted way to navigate a rapidly sprawling web. Some said that Google should be concerned. Others, predictably, overreacted and labeled Siri a "Google killer."

????Then last week Google's (GOOG) former CEO and current chair released his responses to Senate subcommittees looking into Google's dominance in the search industry. In the past few years, Schmidt has transitioned from a seasoned and successful CEO to something of a loose cannon who spends most of his time retracting, or explaining or laughing away his previous statements. So when Schmidt, citing some of those commentators who saw Apple's (AAPL) Siri as a Google competitor, suggested that Siri could be a force in search, he drew a skeptical response. Some said Schmidt was just downplaying Google's prominence in search. Others pointed out that Siri's own default search engine is Google.

????But how can Google be a monopoly that is about to get its clock cleaned by Apple? The truth is less certain, if equally dramatic: The search industry is in the early stages of a disruptive period of change. It will look more like Siri than Google does today -- that is, it will have a more intuitive AI feel to it. Apple and Google -- and maybe even Microsoft (MSFT) -- will play a key role in shaping it. Which means it's well past time to be worrying about whether Google is a monopoly.

????In fact, Google isn't a even search monopoly anymore. It controls around two thirds of the search market. That statistic was more significant several years ago, before the rise of specialized searches through sites like Yelp for restaurants, Kayak for travel and Twitter for real-time chatter. Google is also said to have 97% of mobile search. But again, that overlooks the fact that most people access the mobile web through apps, not browsers.

????In a way, search has always been about connecting us with the information we need on the web. Before search, there were directories like Yahoo (YHOO) and Excite. Then AltaVista and Inktomi built search engines based on the simple search box, and Google cleaned up, first by building a better search box and then by continually improving it. Google's impact on search wasn't a sudden revolution but a gradual progression that -- only in retrospect -- seems profound.