Google expands its horizons beyond search, aims at Yahoo, MSN

May 22, 2005
(CoolAvenues News Wire)

Google Inc. has launched a personalized service that will allow users to make a customized web-page instead of simple Google home-page. Available at the URL http://www.google.com/ig, this service will let users to access their email (through gmail accounts), Google News, weather updates, stock-alerts and also RSS feeds from other sites along with its main search box.

The latest move by Google will help it in becoming more of a single stop player like a portal and will put in direct competition to other large portals like Yahoo & MSN. Incidentally, Yahoo has a personalized web-page service known as My Yahoo, which is operational for last nine years.

Analysts see this latest move by Google as an attempt to expand its market and broach on territories of Yahoo & MSN by offering more services like email, news and personalized pages while at the same time, Yahoo & MSN are stepping their stake in search market by launching revamped search services. Recently, Yahoo has been testing a search service which has a striking resembles to Google in its appearance (http://search.yahoo.com/).

While some analysts are not agreeing to the latest move by Google saying that these all latest moves will cloud the brand image of Google and may impact its leadership in search business but Internet experts believe otherwise.

As per Internet industry experts, the latest move by Google is to increase its page views by increasing its dedicated traffic. At present Google revenue is contributed by two streams, one of which is served on its search pages, while second one is contributed by third party websites, which are part of its Adsense program. In the last quarter, which ended 31st March 2005, Google reported a total revenue of 1.256 billion, of which 52% revenue was contributed by Google sites while 47% revenue was contributed by third party websites which are part of the Adsense program. However, of the $ 584 million, which Google earned through its Adsense network, it paid 79% of the same to its partners, hence making the net contribution to Google top line less than 21%. Moreover, there is increased worry among Adwords users about some possibility of click frauds carried by third party sites.

Hence, Google is launching more of its services, which can expand its own network and can offer adversities a better return on their advertising dollar, as it will be very easy to monitor or track any click fraud happening on a gmail account. Hence, this service will further catapult Google to top 3 position on Internet as it will build more page views and more revenues. So another winning shot from Google.

Concluded.

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