RE: This chat room is redonculous!I'm Long and overweight in INT and agree "both sides are being misrepresented"
What I don't agree with in unplugme's post is that it is "meaningless". I've read all I can find and concluded that Ortsbo does use the Google API although they won't publicly admit it. (Thank goodness) Also concluded that according to Intertainment Inc (Lucatch but most emphatically Mark H.) the shutdown of this API won't affect Ortsbo.
If so, this is a tremendous boost for Ortsbo. The number of programmers and sites furious with Google is amazing. Many sites and even businesses may have to shut down since they depend on the Google API. "How can Google expect us to ever use one of their products again?" is a common thread through the articles and especially the Comments following the articles.
I have absolutely no idea what role the Google API plays in Ortsbo. Can it be replaced? Need it be replaced? Will this, as David L. could be subtly suggesting in a couple places, turn Ortsbo more towards being the universal platform of 12 local chat centres. (i.e. MSN, Facebook etc) or is he brilliantly using this free publicity as an opportunity to point this, so far, vastly overlooked Ortsbo feature out?
I'm trying to go right down the middle here as an investor. You cannot tell me that understanding the significance of this is unimportant. As one writer says...."Ortsbo will be targeting these users (Google API) regardless, and for real time translation of user generated original in the moment text through chat or email. Not blogs, web pages, books or other documents. As noted by others Microsoft is likely to fill the gap in this area."
Same article..."It has not been confirmed by the company as to whether Ortsbo makes use of the Google Translation API or which translation data base it employs to execute translations. Assuming that the Google API is employed, the discontinued use of it is not likely to be problematic keeping in mind that there are other translation databases and API's available (e.g., Microsoft)"
Yet the writer admits (rightly so) he owns INT shares. <sigh> I wind up with more questions than when I started.
I guess after reading everything I could find I've come away with this. If losing this Google API is so devastating to other current businesses it why is INT so lucky that "This DOES NOT affect Ortsbo". If, and I have to assume it is, true then Ortsbo should benefit greatly.