Ask Jeeves Acquires Teoma Technologies

Ask Jeeves Inc. said it acquired closely held Teoma Technologies Inc. to expand its Web-search technology. Terms weren’t disclosed. Emeryville, Calif.-based Ask Jeeves said it will keep Teoma as a stand-alone site and incorporate Teoma’s technology into its own search service.

Piscataway, N.J.-based Teoma, started from a Rutgers University research project in 1998, groups search results into three categories, an approach designed to spare people from looking through hundreds of listings.