Google Answers wasn't knowledge search, it was a paid answers service. The focus there was lower volume, higher quality regulated by a financial marketplace rat

Google Answers wasn't knowledge search, it was a paid answers service. The focus there was lower volume, higher quality regulated by a financial marketplace rather than community features. Not really even in the same class of product. It was shut down not because of competition but instead because it wasn't worth anything to Google, really, at least relative to their search product.