It’s as you would have expected — searches for Steve Jobs skyrocketed at Google, after news of his death spread. Oddly, Google Trends — which shows spiking search queries — failed to show this activity until hours later. Google, Yahoo Didn’t Show Spike Yesterday, I had some people ask me why Steve Jobs wasn’t showing […]
Apple cofounder, chairman and former CEO Steve Jobs has died today at age 56. Apple’s board issued the following statement about his death: We are deeply saddened to announce that Steve Jobs passed away today. Steve’s brilliance, passion and energy were the source of countless innovations that enrich and improve all of our lives. The […]
The search industry is getting a little more mainstream recognition every day, as tonight’s episode of The Colbert Report picked on Google’s handling of the Spreading Santorum situation. This time the target was software engineer Matt Cutts, long known to search industry insiders as head of Google’s Web Spam and search quality team, he doesn’t […]
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web. From Search Engine Land: Why So Many Blogs Fail (And What to Do About It) It’s a safe bet that right this minute, someone, somewhere, is advising a small business owner to start a blog. […]
Scoreboard: Facebook guy – 1, Google guys – 0. Or, more accurately: Facebook guy – $17.5 billion, Google guys – $16.7 billion (each). Those are the estimated net worths of Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and Google co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page, as reported in the latest edition of the Forbes 400 Rich List — […]
Is Google (and Bing, by the way) not being “responsible” by failing to remove an anti-Rick Santorum web site? The Republican presidential candidate believes so, speaking out this week against an unfavorable listing for his name. But “fixing” Santorum’s “Google problem” isn’t as easy as it sounds. Defining Santorum For those who aren’t familiar with […]
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web. From Search Engine Land: Facebook’s ‘Like’ Button Declared Illegal In Germany Citing violations to the countries strict privacy laws, the Independent Center for Privacy Protection (ULD) called for all Facebook ‘like’ plugins to be removed […]
In this week’s Search In Pictures, here are the latest images culled from the web, showing what people eat at the search engine companies, how they play, who they meet, where they speak, what toys they have, and more.
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web. From Search Engine Land: Google+ Poised To Become Number Two Network In 12 Months According To Survey A Bloomberg-YouGov survey of 1,003 online adults found that Google+ is on a trajectory to surpass other social […]
At the recent SEMPO LA Mobile Event (sponsored by AT&T interactive) moderator Danny Sullivan told a story about the early days at Google. As early as 2000, Sergey Brin was telling everyone who would listen about the incredible applications of his search engine on cell phones. Even for a forward thinker like Danny, this seemed […]
Below is today’s top news relating to Google+, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web. Googler Shares How Google+ Is Built I’m a technical lead on the Google+ team is an “ask me anything conversation” with Google engineer Joseph Smarr, Technical lead for Google+. Smarr answers 20+ questions on the […]
The irony of Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg being the most followed person on Google+ is over. He’s disappeared from the top rankings, along with Google CEO Larry Page who was the second most followed and other Google execs. It’s down to a glitch, Google says. Google+ allows you to show the number of people you […]
Just over a week old, how’s Google+ doing? Comprehensive stats are hard to come by. But from our own experience, along with some other stats out there such as a new top Google+ accounts list, it seems to easily be eclipsing its Google Buzz predecessor. Google Buzz Never Really Buzzed Search Engine Land has been […]
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web. From Search Engine Land: Google, MSFT, Yahoo In Talks To Buy Hulu: Report Hulu is apparently a popular dance partner at the moment. The Los Angeles Times is reporting that Google, Microsoft and Yahoo are […]
In this week’s Search In Pictures, here are the latest images culled from the web, showing what people eat at the search engine companies, how they play, who they meet, where they speak, what toys they have, and more.
Last night I had my first experience with Google+ Hangout, the video chat feature that allows up to 10 people to talk simultaneously. Bradley Horowitz (pictured below in the big window) announced a public Hangout and very quickly the room filled up. People were waiting in line to get in. Sergey Hung Out Though it’s […]
Google executive chairman Eric Schmidt just finished being interviewed at the D Conference by Kara Swisher and Walt Mossberg, and there were a number of interesting revelations that came out. I thought a list of highlights was in order. The highlights below are roughly listed in the order they came up during the interview, rather being […]
With management changes and numerous other efforts Google is trying to “get back to its startup roots.” So how about a video from when Google was really a startup. On the Xooglers blog (and below) is a video of a “TGIF meeting.” Taken in 1999 by Doug Edwards, who was then the director of consumer […]
Two of the biggest names in search are on the 2011 TIME 100 — the magazine’s choices for the most influential people in the world: Google CEO Larry Page and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. In the short Zuckerberg essay, April Capone – the mayor of East Haven, Conn., tells the story of how she donated […]
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web. From Search Engine Land: IAC Revises And Re-Ups Its Deal With Google IAC, the parent of Ask.com, the Daily Beast and Citysearch, today announced it has amended and extended its distribution agreement with Google through […]
As we and others reported yesterday, Google CEO Larry Page is shuffling the deck with his executive team, with a reassertion of engineering across the board it appears. Here’s the Google roster of top executives as it still reads on the site: Larry Page, CEO Eric Schmidt, Executive Chairman Sergey Brin, Co-Founder Nikesh Arora, Senior […]
According to wire service AFP, France’s data privacy regulator has imposed a EUR 100,000 ($142,000) fine to punish Google for collecting private WiFi data via Street View in France. This is the first fine/penalty any country has levied against Google over the WiFi data collection. When it first occurred, Google acknowledged the data collection but […]
Five years ago, I wrote a story called “25 Things I Hate About Google.” It went viral, to my surprise. I thought it was worth revisiting that story on its five year anniversary, to see how many of those “hates” have been fixed. So let’s dive in!
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web. From Search Engine Land: Twitter Says Activity Levels Are Soaring With the five-year anniversary of the first tweet approaching, Twitter says user activity is soaring. In a blog post that details tweet and account activity, […]
What does lead U2 singer Bono and Google co-founder Sergey Brin have in common? They are both in the running for a new award named the Gorbachev Awards. The Telegraph reports the former Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, is holding an international award designed for honoring “people capable of changing the world.” The award will be […]
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web. From Search Engine Land: AdWords Preview Tool Gets Mobile-Focused Facelift Ever wonder how your AdWords ads look on different devices in different places? Google has added some features to its AdWords Preview tool in an […]
Google’s co-founders have long admired Apple CEO Steve Jobs, even though they now compete directly with his company. So I couldn’t help thinking that Jobs helped inspire yesterday’s announcement that Larry Page was taking over the helm at Google. (Jobs himself turned over the reins of his company this week to COO Tim Cook out […]
Wow. Just announced, Google CEO Eric Schmidt is stepping down from that position, to become “Executive Chairman,” with Google cofounder Larry Page stepping into the CEO role. Below, some reflection on how Schmidt came into the role that Page once held and why the company may be making a change now.
Has Google’s relevancy gotten worse? A recent opinion poll suggests not, while at the same time confirming a concern that’s been rising in anecdotal accounts — there’s too much “noise” surrounding the “signal.” Rasmussen Reports surveyed 740 adult Americans on January 4-5 about a variety of search engine related issues. The key question that caught […]
So you or your child has already conquered the annual school science fair? And you’ve even dominated at the regional and state levels, too? And you’re thinking to yourself, “We need a real challenge. Competing against Johnny down the block was too easy.” Well, Google has something just for you: the first Google Science Fair. […]
There’s a fascinating discussion developing around the question of what the Goldman Sachs $450 or $500 million investment means for a future Facebook IPO. Does it mean it’s around the corner? Alternatively does it do the opposite and delay an IPO a year or more? At the center of the debate is an obscure SEC […]
Android is a monster success — much more successful than most would have predicted at the outset — while its sibling Chrome OS is just now getting its opportunity to prove itself. The use of Android as the OS for Google TV suggested to many that Chrome’s days were numbered. TechCrunch pointed out that GMail […]
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web. From Search Engine Land: How The New Facebook Messages & Email System Works At one end of the spectrum, Facebook says it’s “simple” and “fun.” On the other end, some are saying it’s Facebook’s version […]
Four of Google’s highest-ranking executives will soon pick up equity awards valued at more than $50 million total, as well as 30% pay raises for 2011. Co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page, along with CEO Eric Schmidt, will continue to collect $1 salaries, as they’ve been doing for many years. According to a new SEC […]
Google has announced they have increased their privacy controls within Google to better secure user privacy. Google has done this in response to them collecting data over wifi via their street view cars. Google has added three broad changes to help secure private data going forward: (1) They appointed a director of privacy, Alma Whitten […]
With the Facebook movie’s debut a week away, how about something to keep you entertained while you wait? A book. About that other major internet drama story, Google. The book? “Googled, The End Of The World As We Know It,” by Ken Auletta. Googled came out at the end of last year, and I’ve been […]
People love lists. Publishers love lists too because they sell copies of traditional print newspapers and magazines and, online, they generate lots of clicks and page views. For example, the HuffingtonPost has become a veritable archive of slideshows: “the 10 best places to live,” the “hottest beach bods of the summer” and so on. US […]
There’s a funny and satirical 1989 British film called “How to Get Ahead in Advertising.” The movie focuses on an ad executive, played by actor Richard E. Grant, who experiences an ethical and mid-life crisis. He develops a boil on his neck, which grows into a literal head (a kind of evil twin) and eventually […]
In January, I was invited to speak to Google’s search quality team about issues I had with Google’s search results. My topic? For queries where I know a subject really well, I often found Google provided some pretty poor results in the top listings along with the good ones. I wanted more perfection! With the […]
Google’s holding a highly anticipated “can’t miss” press event today. The news? Perhaps the new results-as-you-type your search feature that started showing today. Perhaps something else. We’ll know at 9:30am Pacific Time today, when the event gets underway. Stay tuned for live blogging. UPDATE: For more, see our article, Google Instant: The Complete User’s Guide. […]