Google-Twitter deal on search moves to desktop

Google has officially announced on Twitter, as well in as an updated post on the Google blog, that they have expanded displaying Twitter content – Tweets – in the Google desktop search results.

“Typing “#ashleymadisonhack” pulls up tweets using the hashtag, while searching for “techradar” will pull up yours truly’s account.

We’ve extended this to desktop now too, and in English everywhere. The search doesn’t need to include the term “twitter” or twitter hashtags – if there are tweets that Google thinks are relevant, it will surface them anyway. If today is Malcolm X’s birthday, for example, and you search for Malcolm X, you’ll find “popular on twitter” results with a link to “more tweets for Malcolm X”. The ability isn’t completely new, however; Twitter integration has been available on Google’s mobile website and apps since May, but this is the first time the rich Twitter cards have arrived on the desktop. It was, and is, a pretty big deal for both companies. The search giant suggests that they’re bringing this functionality to more languages soon.

Today it rolls out to desktop search results as well. Twitter isn’t required for people to see the tweets; those who click through while not being signed onto Twitter will be taken to the network’s logged out experience.