Baidu wants to deliver services, not just provide information

Taipei

FOR more than a decade, Baidu Inc's Robin Li has been the top provider of search services for China's Internet population. Now he wants to help them get laundry delivered, book a doctor's appointment or hire a chef to cook in their homes.

The future, as Mr Li sees it, is not in search but in services, connecting people through the Web to thousands of entrepreneurs and businesses in the real world. He's betting billions of dollars on the untested vision, risking revolt among investors as he sacrifices profit today for future growth.

The significance of the effort was made clear last week when Mr Li took the stage at Baidu's annual conference in Beijing. Internet search, which generates virtual…