Google holds the top position as the search engine in most countries, including Bangladesh. According to the latest statistical data, the search market share of Google in this country is 98.3%. The second most regularly used search engine is Bing (3.42%). Other commonly chosen engines are DuckDuck Go and Naver. However, Bangladesh has introduced its own search engines like Chorki. Pipilika is also another Bangladesh-related search engine. But, it ultimately failed to serve its purpose effectively. Let us talk more about these search engines.
The emergence of Pipilika in 2013
Just like Yandex in Russia and Baidu in China, Bangladesh took a step to launch its own search engines. From a global perspective, Google grabs a significant share of the search engine market. But, Pipilika was launched to help those who desire regional language-oriented search engines. It was the first search engine in the Bengali language. The engine initially had a range of features. For instance, you could search for Bengali Wikipedia, news, and blogs. Users could also find information from a national database.
During the launch of the beta version, users could search for information in English and Bengali. According to Ruhul Amin, who manages the technical features of Pipilika, the engine aimed to search and analyze Bengali data. The team behind Pipilika also added a Bengali dictionary to the search engine. So, even if the user entered the wrong spellings of a word, Pipilika could execute the search automatically.
Google’s advancement- The main cause of Pipilika’s failure
Till 2010, Google could not provide the best results for searchers in the Bengali language. However, this tech giant started developing an infrastructure to serve these users. During that period, Bengali was the 7th most popular language in the world. Over 25 crore Bengali-speaking people were not able to use the internet at that time.
With the increasing number of Bengali speakers, Google collaborated with the ICT Ministry in Bangladesh. The Bangladesh-based Google Developer Group started a campaign and added lakhs of Bengali words to Google Translator.
So, Google users in Bangladesh started finding the best results related to the keyword. The search engine also introduced a voice search system for various languages ranging from Malayalam to Bengali and Gujarati. Currently, Google is capable of identifying the local language of Bangladesh’s region, like Chittagong.
As a result, users did not feel the need to use a different search engine (such as Pipilika). In due course, Pipilika did not get attention and was finally shut down. With the popularity of Google in Bangladesh, Google’s shopping feature has gained the attention of several users of the country. Many entrepreneurs use Google Shopping to list their items.
According to a news portal, Bangladesh currently has more than 4 crore internet users. Around 35% of users use Google every day. The majority of users is using Gmail, Play Store, YouTube, and social media platforms. Moreover, several users in Bangladesh use the search engine using their mobiles.
More about the dominance of Google in Bangladesh
Many users all over the world prefer using Google as the search engine. You can also notice the same scenario in Bangladesh. Although Google has its own browser (Chrome), it has gained its position in other browsers like Firefox, Opera Mini, Brave, and UC Browser. These are some commonly chosen browsers in Bangladesh.
So, Google developed a monopoly in the search engine market. After introducing Google Search, it launched Gmail, Maps, Docs, and Calendar. The video streaming platform, YouTube was acquired by Google. Android device manufacturers have chosen Google Chrome as the default browser.
The launch of the Bangladesh-oriented search engine- Chorki
Chorki is another business-oriented search engine for citizens in Bangladesh. It is especially intended for local eCommerce and involves local culture, lifestyle, and psychology. The main mission of the startup company, Chorki, was to assist local businessmen in promoting their businesses in the digital world. But, what is the significant difference between Google and Chorki? Chorki gives its focuses mainly on business.
According to Zahidul Amin, the co-founder, and CEO of Chorki, the search engine is for providing users with local content. His team aims to make online searches culturally accessible and locally oriented.
It is worth checking the audience composition of Chorki.com.
According to a source of data, 79.45% of users are male, while 20.55% of users are female. The age group of the majority of users of is 25 to 34 years.
Chorki users also use the special feature of the engine to look for food and restaurants. They can also find local news, places, products, and jobs. The team behind Chorki believes that Bangladesh will have a vast eCommerce market. That is why the team started working on the development of Chorki e-shop. Chorki raised fund from Mind Initiative and Malaysian VC firm to make the project successful.
What led to the development of Chorki.com?
According to Rashed Moslem, the co-founder of Chorki, a search engine is not merely a technology to search for information. He believes that it should relate to culture and psychology. Rashed claims that Google does not provide several things, which are essential for citizens in Bangladesh. Still, it is a prominent search engine and provides solid results.
Nevertheless, Rashed thinks that several opportunities have to be explored in Bangladesh. When you search for information, the page does not display results, particularly for Bangladesh. Even many results provided by Google are irrelevant to users from this country.
To conclude, Google, DuckDuckGo, and a few other known engines will continue dominating the market in Bangladesh. Bangladeshi businesses that want to make a global presence should optimize their websites for Google and other major search engines.
In fact, Google plays a prominent role in the search engine market of Bangladesh and other countries. Still, Bangladesh has tried to create its own search engine to help users find local content. It is easy for users to find Bangladesh-related information and news using the engines like Chorki. Even local businesses should make their websites accessible to Chorki users.