Searching the world wide web for local services and facilities: A review on the patterns of location-based queries

Many queries sent to search engines refer to specific locations in the world. Location-based queries try to find local services and facilities around the user’s environment or in a particular area. This paper reviews the specifications of geospatial queries and discusses the similarities and differences between location-based queries and other queries. We introduce nine patterns for location-based queries containing either a service name alone or a service name accompanied by a location name. Our survey indicates that at least 22% of the Web queries have a geospatial dimension and most of these can be considered as location-based queries. We propose that location-based queries should be treated different from general queries to produce more relevant results.

Takeovers: Acceptance facilities revisited in the Patrick case

Takeovers undertaken in Australia are highly regulated transactions. Once shareholders in the target accept an offer they have a limited opportunity, if any at all, to reconsider or revoke their acceptance in the light of new circumstances. Arguably, this explains target shareholders reluctance to accept an offer made for their shares under a takeover. The problem of shareholder inertia in takeovers has been identified by bidders, who have sought to induce bid acceptance through the use of innovative mechanisms. The efficacy of the Acceptance Facility mechanism was recently revisited in the Panel decision in Patrick Corporation Ltd’s takeover by Toll Holdings Ltd.