The Live Search Blog reports that Microsoft is abandoning its Live Search Books and Live Search Academic projects. We argue that this might be a sign of a greater cultural weakness of Microsoft.

Microsoft will keep the current Live Search Books and Live Search Academics databases, and the data will be included in regular web search results.

The end of the digitization project

The databases will not be updated though, as Microsoft is also closing down its “digitization initiatives,” including the library scanning and their in-copyright book programs.

This means that Microsoft is, in essence, giving up fighting Google in an area that many has considered an important part of the future of search.

Google is clearly planning to become the one stop portal for all kinds of information, including the printed word, and book scanning and indexing is an important part of that strategy.

Too strong focus on short term profits

Our guess is that Microsoft has come the the conclusion that such an adventure would not be profitable, and that the main focus for search should be the regular web searcher, and not experts, academics and researchers.

The Live blog says:

Given the evolution of the Web and our strategy, we believe the next generation of search is about the development of an underlying, sustainable business model for the search engine, consumer, and content partner. For example, this past Wednesday we announced our strategy to focus on verticals with high commercial intent, such as travel, and offer users cash back on their purchases from our advertisers.

We are not so sure if this is a sensible approach. The scholars and experts belongs to the main opinion makers on the Web, and they were the ones that made Google a success by promoting it for free in their circles.

Moreover, they have a lot of purchasing power and there are bound to be more of them as the educational levels are raising all over the world.

Finally, there will have to be changes in international copyright laws, making written content more easily available, and when that happens “paper-based” high quality content will be a very attractive source of information.

Not all of Microsoft’s work in this area is wasted. They intend to provide publishers with digital copies of their scanned books. They are also removing their contractual restrictions placed on the digitized library content and making the scanning equipment available to their digitization partners and libraries.

The two search services include some 80 million articles and 750,000 scanned books.

The Swedish blog Internetbrus argues that this is a serious setback for academic search, as Live’s product has been much better than Google Scholar.

Is there something wrong with the Microsoft business culture?

We would actually like Microsoft to succeed as an online search property. Search needs alternatives to Google, also for Google’s sake, so that they do not become complacent and less innovative.

It seem, however, that the traditional economists and managers is in control of Microsoft, making it hard to develop grand visions of the future, and that this stops Microsoft from becoming the innovative alternative to Google we all need.

Microsoft, of all companies, has the money needed to be daring in this field. Instead they seem backward looking and timid.

This may partly explain Yahoo’s resistance to becoming part of the Microsoft empire. In spite of all its cash, Microsoft may actually end up suffocating what’s left of Yahoo’s innovative spirit.