Looks as though online classifieds giant Craigslist has decided to block Oodle from aggregating their content, which includes jobs.
This is quite a curious move by Craig. Although their revenue is driven by job postings, only three markets currently charge for postings. The rest of Craigslist is free.
So, why block Oodle from scraping their content?
Jet-lagged, I’m failing to find a good answer. As much as Craigslist plays the peace, love and world happiness card – all at no cost (for most) – could they actually be eying a more market-grabbing, corporate agenda (note: eBay has a 25 percent stake in Craigslist)?
If so, blocking such aggregators from scraping Craigslist content may be a big reason Google hasn’t jumped into vertical search for classifieds.
And why does Craigslist still allow Indeed, SimplyHired and Jobster to scrape job content, while eliminating Oodle? Very curious.
Stay tuned. More questions to be asked and answered as this unfolds, I’m sure.
Popularity: 2% [?]
October 14th, 2005 at 4:13 pm
Craigslist values the content that they provide and the users that they have built a relationship with over the years.
I think what some folks in the “aggregator” business forget is the value of the integrity of data and what the end user posting sets as expectations.
It goes back to Flipdog and WHY corporate sites were so fumed….and why most, if not all cross posting relationships fail.
If a company/business post information they expect to control the content.
As far as the Jobster/Workzoo/Indeed models……not sure about the life.
Watched Jobster CEO and was confused as hell, are you a partner with job boards or do you think they are a joke…..he makes bold/eager beaver predictions about the demise……does that mean that their tool focused around postings will also fail? They talk of a tool for managing email campaigns to job seekers…..*news flash*, many an HR person/recruiter has been working job seekers in this fashion as long as email has been around.
I will give them credit, they have created BUZZ…..but wether buzz translates into results/revenue is yet to be seen….you can have all the passion, products and partnerships you can handle, BUT if you don’t have RR results/revenue…..good night.
Thanks
OS
October 14th, 2005 at 4:24 pm
who is this old school guy? sounds like someone i’d like to get to know :)
hey — we’re having a go at it. baby steps. job boards aren’t bad, but they ain’t perfect either. and there’s plenty of room for innovation in the recruiting space for years to come.
We’ve got 150+ companies using jobster today and most of them are enthusiastic about the results we’re providing for them today as well as where we’re headed. There are some case studies you can read on our website. We’re driving real revenues and real results. That said, we’ve still got a long way to go to prove that we are here for the long haul. keep challenging us … we’re the kind of scrappy team that appreciates a good kick in the behind to keep us going …
October 14th, 2005 at 4:51 pm
Jason
I wish you luck and will route for you, just don’t get to ahead of yourself.
The babystep comment is reality.
Are there a lot of mistakes in our space, without question. Do any of us have all the answers…….no way.(except Joel)(blog plug)
Go the route of helping with the pain. …..and don’t spread your energy too thin. I know you have a lot.
Cheers-
OS
October 17th, 2005 at 9:41 pm
I would say Craigslist thinks Oodle is too much of a competitor to let them use their content. They dont want to see them encroach on their turf.