Commentary

Did Google Create Search Monopoly?

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Consumer Watchdog, the nonprofit, nonpartisan consumer group, plans to send a report to U.S. and European antitrust regulators suggesting Google's "Universal Search" feature, rather than helping to expand horizons, limits consumer choice. The report titled "Traffic Report: How Google is Squeezing out Competitors and Muscling Into New Markets" analyzes three years of traffic data from more than 100 Web sites since 2007.

Using Web metrics from Experian Hitwise, the watchdog group aims to analyzes Google's business practices and performance, suggesting Google has put up "barriers to entry" in markets like video by manipulating its search results.

While Google leads in search engine market share for queries and paid search ads, the Consumer Watchdog group has set out to analyze whether the engine has an unfair advantage. The group is trying to get the government to take a closer look at Google and possibly slap the engine with a hefty antitrust fine. Perhaps, rather, this report signals a maturing search market because it sounds all too similar to the early days at Microsoft.

The Experian Hitwise data suggests Google has established a "Microsoft-like monopoly" in some key search areas, according to Consumer Watchdog. In the video market, Google has nearly doubled its share to 80% in the past few years, which the group defines as the legal definition of a monopoly, according to federal courts.

The report, however, fails to credit Google's purchase of YouTube in 2006 to the increase, and instead concludes consumers are directed primarily or exclusively toward Google's own services such as YouTube, which was one of the most popular video sites before Google acquired it.

SEO experts might argue links, relevancy and authority of the Web site play a major role in rankings. And while the report bashes Google for its success in Universal Search, the report doesn't analyze Google's failings, or less than successful services like Buzz.

While the study suggests "a rapid decline in choice for consumers," says Reliable-SEO Founder David Harry. Google simply lists more choices for consumers with less clicks. It's not about world domination, but rather giving users what they want, he says. Google has reams of data showing what people find most useful, from behavioral to qualitative generated online and by focus groups.

"The market generally works itself out, and if something pisses off users, the users stop using," Harry says.

The report also suggests that Google's lucrative Internet business has allowed it to gain influence over bricks-and-mortar retailers. It goes as far as to suggest small businesses feel they have no choice but to list their companies online with Google, and that consumers are steered, many without their knowledge, toward the local businesses that are willing to participate.

Consumer Watchdog points to stats in Google product search from November 2007, which had about 1.3 million unique visitors, up to 11.9 million the next month. By December of 2009, Google product search had more than 20 million unique visitors, making it second only to Shopzilla with 21 million, a gain of more than 1200%.

Search engines are not made from magic. Harry Potter doesn't have influence over the search query. Google is a technology company first and foremost. The algorithms are programmed, especially in Universal Search, to return sites based on preferences of the person searching on keywords, but the report suggests Google continue to move "increasingly toward this strategy of deliberately manipulating search results," and provides an example in the report of how it works. I agree with Harry when he says Google figured out what consumers want in search results and adapted; nothing more.

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