Norwegian enterprise search company Fast Search and Transfer has announced the availability of its Personalised Search Platform (PSP) which integrates with the firm's Enterprise Search Platform. 

Oslo-based Fast is increasingly considered a significant competitor to Google in the enterprise search space.

Recent deals have included an agreement with News International, which has licensed Fast's enterprise search platform on which Search Derivative Applications are built. 

Fast PSP provides an enterprise-focused platform that allows users to search on local drives, across the enterprise and on the web. Organisations can also create applications for different sets of users that leverage existing knowledge.

"Fast considers the desktop a critical underused component of the enterprise, " said chief technology officer Bjørn Olstad.

"Providing the ability to quickly and easily access information from the desktop will have a positive impact on an organisation's bottom line."

Analysts also see a significant return on investment for Fast PSP. "An organisation employing 1,000 knowledge workers loses $5.7m annually just in the time wasted by employees having to reformat information as they move among applications," said Sue Feldman, vice president for content technologies research at IDC.

"Not finding information costs that same organisation $5.3m a year."