« Omniture Launches Analytics-Driven Site Search | Main | Less is More: What Social Media and Electronics Can Teach the Establishment »
September 15, 2008
Concerns Over Google's Monopolistic Actions Make Their Way to DOJ
Sourcetools.com, a former business directory, was making $115,000 a month in profit until the summer of 2006, when Google changed its algorithm and spiked some AdWords bid prices for sites with "poor landing pages." The business model was one employed by many an internet entrepreneur - bid on AdWords and slap some AdSense on the site.
Of course, Google calls this ad arbitrage if all you have is a made-for-adsense site. But Sourcetools provided a service - a business directory not unlike many other directories out there.
Sourcetools spent a ton of money revamping their site to make it to Google's liking, not that Google was being terribly specific about what that liking is. But they could never get back into Google's good graces, and now the domain sits service-less, and up for sale.
This is just one of the many complaints being sent to the Department of Justice as they conduct an investigation into Google's ad deal with Yahoo.
Last week, the Association of National Advertisers sent a letter to the DOJ expressing their opposition to the deal. And the DOJ is taking the concerns seriously. They hired antitrust lawyer Sandy Litvack to consult on the deal.
Whether Google's actions are an inadvertent breakdown in internal communications or intentional pursuit of power, they do appear to be monopolistic. That along with today's financial news is a good reminder that to be wary of fast money and to diversify your site's income!
via NYT
Posted by Nathania Johnson on September 15, 2008 10:46 AM
Comments
Chuck Ellis September 15, 2008 5:30 PM
Sourcetools.com a business directory?
Have you looked at the site?
It is a typical bidjacker site that is a waste to the visitor and horrible for us who are bidding on relevant terms.
Steve September 15, 2008 10:49 PM
I dont about sourcetools.com but I did experienced the Google monopoly in many cases. They recklessly disable accounts it they feel we are not upto their rules. non-flexible rules in their services like AdWords, forcing us to follow everything they say. And if not, your services will not run and you loose your business.
We all cheered when Google emerged as a mighty power. But in the coming days we will regret our habitual usage of its services. It is unleashing its greed for money and pursuit of dominance.
Everything goes fine as long as we follow their rules blindfolded.
Guna October 14, 2009 6:04 AM
Nathania - hard not to cheer Google in this one. The thousands (maybe tens of thousands, who knows) of "synthetic sites" out there like sourcetools' have really eroded the search experience for all users, and somebody needed to step in and stop it.
Not that Google has completely stopped it - long ways off - but the message is clear, and welcome. Particularly for those of us who genuinely strive to build rich, deep and meaningful content into our sites, this may clear away some of the utter muck.