MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., August 15, 2001 - Netscape Communications, a subsidiary of America Online, Inc. (NYSE: AOL), today announced the launch of an enhanced version of its popular Netscape Search product with significant upgrades to performance and navigation, giving users more choice and better results while executing searches online.
Netscape Search, built on the Internet's largest human-edited directory, the Netscape Open Directory Project (ODP), unveiled a new version today with significant changes to performance and layout, streamlining the search process and making it even more useful for those looking for information online. The update to Netscape Search is the latest enhancement to Netscape's suite of online tools and services available on Netscape.com and throughout a number of AOL Time Warner Web sites.
With the new version, Netscape provides users with a streamlined interface, including a more prominent ODP Directory listing, easy and direct access to additional search engines and a listing of "most popular related searches" for every Netscape Search query. Netscape has also engineered significant advancements into its primary search engine, allowing for deeper and more thorough searches of ODP data, increasing the number of relevant search results.
"Netscape Search has always been optimized to give users fast, accurate and fresh search results," said Jim Bankoff, President of Netscape. "Our upgrade to search allows Netscape to provide even better results by giving users more choice in tailoring their searches, creating an all-in-one destination for searching the Internet."
The new Netscape Search features significant changes to the way its' core engine searches the more than 2.7 million sites within the ODP. Unlike many directories that only search titles and descriptions, Netscape Search is optimized to search entire Web pages within the Directory, digging deeper and producing a larger number of relevant search results. If relevant results are not found within the initial search, Netscape provides users with secondary results from the award-winning Google search engine.
The Netscape Search page on Netscape.com (http://search.netscape.com/) gives users a wealth of new search options including the ability to conduct a search using a number of major third party search engines and directories right from the main search window. As part of its "NetSearch" program, Netscape has affiliated with GoTo, Google, LookSmart, Lycos and Ask Jeeves to offer Netscape.com and Netscape browser users with direct access to alternate search applications, leading to greater choice and creating a true one-stop search destination.
Netscape has also added a comprehensive list of topical search engines to the search index page. Designed to meet the needs of users looking for either general or specific types of information, topical search engines for yellow pages, white pages, classifieds, news, stock quotes, shopping and travel are located via easy to access tabs right off the main search window, allowing for quick targeted searches.
About Netscape
Netscape Communications is a leading provider of tools and services wherever people go on the Internet. Netscape pioneered the development of world-class Web browsers, including Netscape 6, and offers a full range of convenient Web applications. Netscape.com is one of the most visited sites on the Internet with more than 40 million registered users. Netscape Netbusiness ranks among the fastest-growing Internet destinations for small business owners. A subsidiary of AOL Inc., Netscape is based in Mountain View, California. Additional information on Netscape is available on the Internet at http://home.netscape.com, by sending email to info@netscape.com or by calling 650-254-1900.
Netscape and Netscape logo are registered trademarks of Netscape Communication Corporation in the United States and other countries.
