Nickname: Firefox user

Review: An extension to Firefox has been created that blocks the Google ads that are placed to the right of the search results. The user never sees the ads. These ads are their main source of income, right?

Date reviewed: Jan 25, 2006 1:27 AM

Nickname: RB

Review: I have been adversiting on Google.com for well over three years. If I am not happy with the return on investment, I'd have left along time ago. That said, I do feel its AdSense program which allows its so-called partner Web sites is a huge scam.

Date reviewed: Jan 18, 2006 10:06 AM

Nickname: Josh

Review: I work for an Irish Company that has decided to increase it's online spend on Google from 6K a month to 11K by the end of 2006. The reason being the rise of broadband penetration in Ireland and the wider EU (Ireland has one of the lowest penetration rates in Europe). I must agree with the reader who said that Europe is three years behind the U.S if not more. Once Western Europe, the Eastern European countries, and Asian countries catch up, only then shall we see a true reflection of the marketplace for online advertising that Google relies on for its revenue. This market is still in its infancy. Google at $800 might not be unrealistic.

Date reviewed: Jan 9, 2006 12:18 PM

Nickname: Bernoulli

Review: The one thing being overlooked is the Internet market potential. When was the last time you were in Europe? Their Internet structure is about where ours was three years ago. Hotels still charge huge fees just to tap into their high speed connections, temporay dial up connections run about 17 cents a minute. Get real, once Europe achieves the same connectivity we do, Internet usage will quadruple. I can go on with China, Russia, and many others. As this potential grows, advertising will grow with this. We have only begun to see what the Internet will do. As Mr. Churchill said, "This is only the beginning, it is not the middle, it is not the end, however, it perhaps is, the end of the beginning."

Date reviewed: Jan 7, 2006 3:41 PM

Nickname: Get Real

Review: The reason Google is so over priced is that all the dummies buying it are the users and not the advertisers. Ask anyone who pays Google and they will tell you Google ads have gotten too expensive for advertisers to make money. In other words, the growth is over. Moreover, in this last year, Google's growth was fueled by clicks on the ads that it places on sponsored Web sites. This whole concept is a scam. People buy up URLs that people type in or go to by accident and they fill the site with Google ads. When people go to these sites they click all over the ads but they never buy anything. In fact, most of the clicks come from the guys that buy up the URLs. I am sure this makes no sense to anyone other than those of us who advertise on Google but trust me Google is in for a hard, hard fall in the next two years. Even in pay per click sponsored search listings Google and Yahoo make most of their money off fradulent clicks. This can't last. Microsoft search? Bye bye Google.

Date reviewed: Jan 7, 2006 2:10 AM

Nickname: J

Review: No mention of Maps? No mention of SMS? The author needs to do more research. These are popular and wonderful tools (SMS is more of a well-kept secret), and knowing Google's track record, monetizing users from those two cannot be far behind, if not here already.

Date reviewed: Jan 6, 2006 10:10 PM

Nickname: PracticalPete

Review: The writing is already on the wall with the announcement of Microsoft Vista. No way will other companies allow Google's current growth and margins to go unchallenged for long.

Date reviewed: Jan 6, 2006 6:09 PM

Nickname: 3putt

Review: What this article overlooks is the enormous click fraud problem that exists in search advertising today. There are many startup software companies claiming to solve this problem, and what would happen to Google's market cap if it turns out that 30-40% of the revenue generated by this Internet giant is generated by fraudulent clicks? Eric S. has been on record stating that this is a big problem. Not to mention that market research shows that almost half of today's search users would migrate to a search technology delivering a more relevant result. Honest inovation is the only thing that will keep a company like Google from sharing the same fate as giants of the technology sectors past--Netscape.

Date reviewed: Jan 5, 2006 7:04 PM

Nickname: Tom Jackson

Review: The problem with most assessments of Google is that they speak of only those things they have already done well: search, CPC, context assessment, etc. and then conclude that since they dominate these areas they are only now in a defensive position. What they neglect are the true strenghts: most attractive employer in the world, the best minds, a culture that understands universality of information and how to make it work for people. It is not the struggle for market share that will stop them. It is the creation of new markets and new products that are not on most people's radar screens. Bet the company not the product. Tom

Date reviewed: Jan 5, 2006 7:00 PM

Nickname: Manju

Review: Google is really an innovative company that has many innovations in its pocket that haven't really made a big market impact. It is true that they generate most of their revenue from one product, search engine marketing. Unless they aggressively build revenues on other products, Google share is going to lose its value very soon!

Date reviewed: Jan 5, 2006 1:39 PM