This chapter explores the transformation of Google from a revolutionary search engine to a powerful advertising platform, discussing the implications of its dominance in web search. It delves into the early days of Google and its mission to organize information, as well as the pivotal decision to adopt advertising as the primary revenue model. The episode also touches on the impact of ads on search experience and user engagement.
It used to feel like magic. Now it can feel like a set of cheap tricks. Is the problem with Google — or with us? And is Google Search finally facing a real rival, in the form of A.I.-powered “answer engines”?
- RESOURCES:
- “A Fraudster Who Just Can’t Seem to Stop … Selling Eyeglasses,” by David Segal (The New York Times, 2022).
- Subprime Attention Crisis: Advertising and the Time Bomb at the Heart of the Internet, by Tim Hwang (2020).
- “Complaint: U.S. and Plaintiff States v. Google LLC,” by the U.S. Department of Justice (2020).
- “Fake Online Locksmiths May Be Out to Pick Your Pocket, Too,” by David Segal (The New York Times, 2016).
- “‘A’ Business by Any Other Name: Firm Name Choice as a Signal of Firm Quality,” by Ryan C. McDevitt (Journal of Political Economy, 2014).
- In the Plex: How Google Thinks, Works, and Shapes Our Lives, by Steven Levy (2011).
- “The Anatomy of a Large-Scale Hypertextual Web Search Engine,” by Sergey Brin and Lawrence Page (Computer Networks and ISDN Systems, 1998).