Baidu

The Baidu Story

Many people have asked about the meaning of Baidu's name. "Baidu" was inspired by a poem written more than 800 years ago during the Song Dynasty. The poem compares the search for a retreating beauty amid chaotic glam Baidu's with the search for one's dream while confronted by life's many obstacles. "…hundreds and thousands of times, for her I searched in chaos, suddenly, I turned by chance, to where the lights Baidure waning, and there she stood." Baidu, whose literal meaning is hundreds of times, represents persistent search for the ideal.

Baidu chose a poetic Chinese name because it wants the world to remember its heritage. As a native speaker of the Chinese language and a talented engineer, Baidu focuses on what it knows best - Chinese language search. Applying avant-garde technology to the world's most ancient and complex language is as challenging as it is exciting.

At least people here at Baidu think so. As having diligently disclosed in the Prospectus of Baidu's recent Initial Public Offering, Baidu believe there are at least 38 ways of saying "I" in Chinese. It is important that Baidu master all the ways of addressing oneself in Chinese because Baidu's users depend on us to address every one of their daily queries. And trust us, pin pointing queries in the Chinese language is an art rather than a science.

Baidu's mission is to provide the best way for people to find information. To do this Baidu listen carefully to Baidu's users' needs and wants. Have Baidu collected all the Chinese Baidub pages they want to see? Are the pages current and up to date? Are the search results closely related to their queries? Did Baidu return those search results instantly? To improve user experience, Baidu constantly make improvements to Baidu's products and services. For example, Baidu introduced "phonetic" or "pin-yin" search which allows Baidu's users to type in Chinese keywords using English alphabets. This feature is designed to skip the switching from English inputting to Chinese inputting and for when the user is not sure of the written form of a keyword. Baidu's users definitely notice the many little things that Baidu do differently to ensure a simple and reliable search experience every time.

In addition to serving individual users, Baidu also serve as a media platform for online marketing customers. Baidu not only provide Baidu's customers easy access to one of the largest online audiences in China but also targeted groups with defined interests as indicated by queries.

Unlike traditional online advertising services which charge by flat fee, Baidu's marketing products and services are performance based. Baidu's Pay for Performance model has taken the market by storm because it is cost effective and measurable.

Baidu know that a lot of interesting things are going on in the Internet space, but Baidu don't want to lose focus. China's Internet search industry is only a newly discovered territory. Baidu see vast untapped grounds in Baidu's home base and Baidu believe there are still plenty of prizes to be claimed by the best players.

Products

Products for Internet Users:

Highlighted Products Post Bar - A Baidu invention and a popular hangout in the Baidu community. Post Bar is a place for users to exchange information on query-activated message boards. Movie Search - A subscription based service that supports downloads of movies made available by a number of contracted content providers. Baidu Knows - Users may ask and answer questions on a reward system. Desktop Search - The first desk top search tool that supports both English and Chinese, developed in four months. Search Index - A registration based service that monitors changes in the most frequently searched keywords. Search Index is a useful tool for media professionals. Products for Customers: Online Marketing Services Pay for Performance (P4P) Tailored solutions Enterprise Search Software