Id33B5: The hubze Blog

miercuri, 18 ianuarie 2012

The hubze Blog

Googlopoly: Will The FTC Allow Google+ to Dominate Google Search?

Posted: 17 Jan 2012 09:48 AM PST

Google Search is under-going some major change, I’m talking about a full-on integration of Google+ into Google Search.

They call it “Search Plus Your World” and it incorporates your Google+ photos, contacts and public pages into search results.

But so far, it looks like Google is deviating from the the simplicity and relevance that out-shined earlier search engines (remember: Ask Jeeves, AOL Search, and HotBot). Not to mention, Google+ is boxing-out Twitter and Facebook results (which are arguably more relevant).

A little while back I posted about Google+ brand pages appearing on the top of Google search results.

Since then Google has amped up the presence of Google+ within Google Search. In fact, this new version of Google Search has been coined by Mashable as the “Social Media Juggernaut”.

Maybe you have already noticed. If you are signed-in to Google+ and find yourself in a Search, you will notice the social integration:

“Search Plus Your World”

Personal results are available in search: image results will dip into the Google+ albums of you and your circles.
Profiles are available in search: when searching a name, Google will auto-complete the name based on your circles.
People and Pages are available in search: depending on what you search, related people and pages that have been made public on Google+ will accompany your search results.

Your entire social graph (Google+) is now integrated into search results.

FYI “Search Plus Your World” can be toggled on/off:

But what about all of your connections on Twitter and/or Facebook? Not only your connections but that data from other networks, Twitter has, after all, proven to be the most valuable source of real-time information.

Twitter blasted Google last week, claiming that “news breaks first on Twitter” and expressing the social network’s concern “that as a result of Google's changes, finding this information will be much harder for everyone.”

This is exactly why the Federal Trade Commission is getting involved.

Following a complaint from Privacy Watchdog, stating that Google is using it’s search engine prominence to uplift its fledgling social network at the expense of their competitors, Facebook and Twitter.

The FTC is now adding Google+ into their ongoing investigation of Google which concerns the violation of antitrust laws in terms of giving its services extra special treatment.

But why shouldn’t Google give its services favorable treatment? Sounds to me like somebody is jealous…

Depending on the FTC’s decision we may see a Facebook Search Engine pop-up in discussion.

Comment and let us know what you think, is Google being unfair?