One might characterize A9 -- Amazon's erstwhile bid to compete in search -- as an innovative failure. The engine was the first with a "street view" product (called "block view") and innovative maps and local search tools. The experimental three-panel interface of A9 was also very innovative, as were other features. The problem, as with other would-be "Google killers," was nobody used it.

Amazon may now say that A9 was always an experiment or a way to help the company refine its own algorithms, but it was at one point an attempt at a consumer search engine that failed. 

Yesterday, however, A9/Amazon announced that it had acquired visual product search company SnapTell:

We are excited to join forces with a company that has innovated on behalf of customers for over a decade and is a pioneer in online shopping. Like Amazon, we believe there is a lot of innovation ahead for visual shopping and we are thrilled to join A9.com at this exciting time.

With this acquisition A9 (if that becomes the brand) may rise again. It's potentially quite significant for both SnapTell and Amazon. Amazon has the products and the capital to make SnapTell a leader in mobile "visual search" and barcode scanning, while SnapTell can potentially become a powerful search tool for Amazon and help drive e-commerce. 

Consider the use case: a shopper with an iPhone or Android device does a search (or barcode scan) on a product in store. She gets Amazon reviews and prices -- and potentially decides to purchase from Amazon. Even if she doesn't buy from Amazon, it reinforces her loyalty to the brand. Undoubtedly data will come or continue to come from other sources than simply Amazon (e.g., TheFind). 

Amazon also gets into mobile advertising or mobile marketing, if you prefer, with SnapTell, which has a range of ad-related or promotional deals with traditional publications. Accordingly it takes Amazon into new business areas. 

But it also underscores growing momentum for search tools that are alternatives to conventional search as represented by the Google search box. There's momentum building around the camera as a input tool and search vehicle. Google itself recently introduced barcode scanning for product search on Android devices. It's also placing more emphasis on voice and experimenting with other ways for users to discover and obtain content vs. conventional search.

I could be wrong but I think this acquisition for Amazon will pay big dividends in multiple ways.