Yahoo! has announced it will be shutting down its auction service as of June 16th 2007. The closure affects Yahoo!'s U.S. and Canadian listings with auction sites in Singapore, Hong Kong and Taiwan to remain open.

The closure comes as little surprise with eBay commanding a huge 94% market share in the online auction segment. Hitwise research director LeeAnn Prescott noted that in the week ending 5th May, Yahoo! Auctions posted only a 0.19% share of the auction market:


The company stated the reason for closing the auction sites was "to better serve our valued customers through other Yahoo properties".

Online auction site eBid.net was quick to capitalize on the Yahoo! Auction news, announcing plans to offer U.S. and Canadian Yahoo! Auction customers a special offer to entice them to join. Yahoo Auction users can upgrade to a lifetime Platinum account membership on eBid.net for free, usually $99.99. The company will even allow users to import their Yahoo! feedback history. While somewhat sneaky, this is a great marketing effort on behalf of the company.

Search Engine Power Play - Microsoft acquires aQuantive

The search heavyweights have all been busy on the acquisition front trying to secure their piece of the top end online advertising market. Microsoft is the last of the search trinity to flex its acquisition muscle, picking up aQuantive for a mere $6 billion.

After Google's recent purchase of DoubleClick for $3.1 billion, and Yahoo!'s less publicized buyout of Right Media for $680 million, this latest power play by Microsoft was not only expected by somewhat overdue.

aQuantive, owns interactive ad agency Avenue A RazorFish, advertising tool provider Atlas, and DrivePM, an online advertising network. While the company is definitely one of the bigger players in the market, the $6 billion price tag was a shock to many in the industry.

So why has Microsoft been so keen to spend big?

It's a case of last chance. After being beaten to the punch by Google in the DoubleClick deal, it was vital that Microsoft bought into the lucrative top end ad market and ensure this time - they weren't out bid.

The Microsoft executives will be ruing the one that got away with DoubleClick, and simply put, aQuantive was really the last major player up for grabs. If they were outbid again, which at that price was unlikely, they would have been essentially locked out of the market.

As Paul Kedrosky pointed out in his post about the deal, it might have been a deliberately aggressive approach by the tech giant.

"It's also a sign of newfound aggression from Microsoft, an example of it saying that it can play the price premium game, locking out competitors like Google and Yahoo by playing bid-'em-up."


aQuantive is definitely a handy addition to the Microsoft advertising arsenal, but I'm still not convinced the deal will help them gain ground on Google and Yahoo! in the online advertising race. Time will tell...

Yahoo!'s $1 Billion Bebo Bid

Rumors are running rife that Yahoo! is set to buy social networking site, Bebo, for as much as $1 billion. The story, started by The U.K's Telegraph has been circulating widely - speculation is now the name of the game.


TechCrunch states,

"The Telegraph isn't exactly known for breaking tech M&A stories, and the rumor has an exceptionally weak source - "according to silicon valley gossip" the article says. That sounds like something the Telegraph's correspondent overheard after ten or twelve cocktails last night at a party. And while I don't doubt that Yahoo is sniffing around Bebo, $1 billion seems a tad high for the service."

Is Bebo worth it? According to leaked documents, Yahoo! would have been willing to pay up to $1.62 billion for Facebook before talks fell through last year. In the last year interest in Bebo has also risen, with British Telecom rumored to offer $550 million in July 2006 for the company, and Viacom entering the scene a month later.

Bebo is much smaller than both MySpace and Facebook; however, they hold the major share of the UK social networking market and could be the entry into market that Yahoo! is looking for. According to ComScore, Bebo has 13.7 million unique users per month, each viewing an average of 20 pages per day! A bid of $1 billion would see Yahoo! paying around $73 per unique visitor, "which is certainly an acceptable cost per acquisition"!

Regardless of whether the offer is rumor or not - news that Yahoo! may be set to acquire social networking site Bebo has seen Yahoo! add 78 cents or 2.7% to its share price on the NASDAQ. If just a rumor has the market jumping (even a little bit) just imagine what could happen if Yahoo! actually do make the purchase!

Google to Eliminate AdSense Arbitrageurs

Late last week, reports emerged that Google was sending out 'account closure' emails to AdSense advertisers who were arbitraging the system with "made for AdSense" websites. These accounts will reportedly be disabled on June 1st, with all outstanding payouts to be made on this date.




Firstly, let's take a look at what exactly defines AdSense Arbitrage. Arbitrage in the AdSense system has been an issue almost from the conception of the program. Basically, arbitrageurs use Google AdWords and other means to send traffic to their website, which they monetize with Google AdSense. Example: I pay $0.05 per click to my website with Google AdWords but get paid $0.30 per click via AdSense - a profit of $0.25.

Generally, 'made for AdSense' (MFA) websites bring down the quality of the content network, which has become the main reason why many advertisers refuse to use it. Removal of these low quality sites is a good move by Google as many advertisers who abandoned the content network may return in light of its increase in quality.
According to a Google spokesperson, this is part of ongoing improvement to the program:


"At Google, we are always focused on how we can make the user experience as positive as possible while still providing value to our publishers and advertisers. As part of this effort, we continually conduct automated and manual reviews of publishers and sites that violate our policies. In some cases, violations of our program policies will result in termination from the AdSense program."


So the question remains, what will these arbitrageurs do now? Jennifer Slegg suggests the Yahoo! advertising network may see a sudden increase in this practice as many advertisers continue to try and monetize their traffic. Will Yahoo! follow Google's lead and ban these sites too? Let us know what you think via our blog comments!

Labels: Google, Google AdSense

Google Universal Search - Changing the Search Marketing Game

At the recent Searchology press conference held at Google headquarters, Google unveiled its latest search enhancement, appropriately titled "Universal Search".Universal Search will see Google updating its algorithm and interface to integrate all its various search verticals into one results page. So now when you enter a search query, relevant results from Google Maps, Google Images, Google Video, Google Blog Search, Google News and the other search categories will start appearing above the main web results.Many of you will be asking why this is such a revelation.

Well it's significant on two levels:1. User ExperienceFrom a searcher's point of view, it makes the main results page more intuitive and user-centric. Universal Search removes the need to navigate to different pages to find "all" relevant content about a particular query. Whether you're looking for a local business, or trying to uncover a new video, it can all be done from the one place.Google have taken it one step further, by actually embedding the results into the page, so now you can drill down into Google Local listings, or watch videos direct from the search engine results page.2. Search Engine MarketingBy integrating all their various search options into one results area, Google has also expanded the focus of search engine marketing. Where businesses in the past focused primarily on Organic Search Engine Marketing (Search Engine Submission and Search Engine Optimization) and Paid Advertising (Pay-per-click sponsored listings), now it's equally important for them to focus on other search verticals.Now, more than ever, businesses should be enhancing their exposure in sections like Google Maps (Google Local), Google Images, Google Video, Google Blog Search as significant improvements in exposure will be much easier in these less competitive verticals.With the integration of other search content at the top of the search engine results page, it also presents businesses with the opportunity of getting that top ranking that might have eluded them in normal organic search engine marketing.Our recent research into Google Local is testament to the opportunity that exists in focusing on other search verticals.
A search for "Hairdresser New York" generates 1,070,000 web results. However, the same search in Google Maps generates only 1,372 listings. So the odds of getting better exposure is much higher in Google Maps, and the best part is that top listings appear at the top of the web results anyway under the "Universal Search" model.After all the interface testing that Google's been doing of late, it looks like Universal Search is here to stay, and rest assured that the other search engines are likely to follow the trend shortly. So the key for online businesses is to go out and make the most of the new exposure opportunities that Universal Search offers.

Google & Yahoo! Go Green!

It's not often we think about online companies contributing excesses of greenhouse gas emissions or pollutants - more often big mining organizations, logging companies and factories are held responsible for the overall desecration of our environment! However, Google and Yahoo!, forever the fierce competitors, are now battling over who has the greater social conscience - who is going 'greenest'?Michael Arrington covers this topic over at TechCrunch and I've touched on his points below.

• Installation of 1.6 megawatts of solar photovoltaic panels, at the Mountain View campus, in California. Google "will be the largest solar installation on any corporate campus in the U.S., and we think it's one of the largest on any corporate site in the world...The amount of electricity that will be generated is equivalent to powering about 1,000 average California homes...offsetting approximately 30% of our peak electricity consumption at those buildings."

• The Google Blog has been a megaphone to raise awareness of the effects of carbon emissions. Along the same vein, an internal Google memo, leaked late last year and titled "Big Goals and Directions - 2006" stated that Google would like to gain carbon neutrality by building 10 megawatt of green power.

• Google launch "Summer of Green" website to promote 'green' travel!

Yahoo!

• Yahoo! are going 'carbon neutral', doing their part to combat climate change, and they're intent on educating you about what changes this will mean for their company, and how you too can take part!
  
• Yesterday, Yahoo! joined forces with Hollywood actor Matt Dillon and Global Green USA to issue the "Greenest City In America" challenge. The introduction of another new site ""Be a Better Planet", [is] a program that empowers Americans to take action against climate change". The winning city gets an entire fleet of hybrid taxis (or the cash equivalent dedicated towards city greening projects), and Yahoo! kick starts the program by donating a fleet of hybrid taxis to New York.
  
  I started writing this article determined to uncover the darker motives Google and Yahoo! could have for 'greening' themselves up, and have decided to stifle my skepticism and accept their efforts - even join them! The competition between Google and Yahoo! in this case seems well worth the effort - let us hope they continue trying to outdo each other on the environmental front!

The Importance of an Enhanced Google Local Business Listing

May 15, 2007





The other day I was chatting to a friend of mine from West Seneca, New York and he shared with me his experience using Google Local to find a pest control business in his area. It really highlights the growing importance of Local Search and the real value of an enhanced listing for local businesses.He said he went to Google Local and typed in "Pest Control West Seneca, New York" and was presented with 10 pest control companies in the area. He clicked on the first company "Good Riddance Pest Control & Water Damage Restoration" and was shown all the information he needed including all their services, what they specialize in, payment methods accepted, when the business was started, contact details and even some customer reviews which helped him make a decision to the company. I reproduced his search and here's a screenshot of what he saw.

Tom said that he also checked a few of the other businesses listed on the first page to see what information they provided. I have summarized the information presented on a few of the other listings on the first page.As the other pest control companies had minimal information available on Google Local, he decided to go with the "Good Riddance Pest Control & Water Damage Restoration".ConclusionAs local search continues its amazing growth it is even more important that businesses have an enhanced local listing in the major local search engines. As is evident from my friend’s experience detailed above, the more information you provide in your listing, the better your chance of getting business from Local Search. Stay tuned for more information on local search as I continue to probe into the search phenomenon.

Google Accused of Discriminating Against Women

MAY 15, 2007

"Google Not Sexist" Claims Company

Late last week a digg post got a lot of attention with users claiming the search giant Google was sexist. The post relates to the search results of the phrase "she invented" with Google suggesting a 'sexist' alternative.

While browsing digg last week a story caught my eye that claimed Google discriminated against women when certain search phrases were entered. The story highlights the search "she invented" which Google returns the suggestion of "Did you mean: he invents".

On further investigation by the Chicago Tribune, it turns out Google makes similar suggestions for the terms "she owns", "she intelligent" and "she responsible." Oddly enough if you Google the alternative of these terms, for example "he invents", Google does not suggest "she invents" as a search result.

In an effort to seek clarity on the matter, a writer from the Chicago Tribune contacted Google to get the final word on the issue. Here is their reply:

"Google develops its own spell-checking algorithms based on sophisticated machine learning methods, using cues from aggregated user input, Web documents, and many other sources."

"The algorithm provides a 'best-guess' alternative suggestion that we think might improve the search results, and is completely generated without human input. It can be thought of as a suggestion offer, rather than a definitive answer."

So it seems the Google suggestions are completely automated, dispelling any wrongdoing or sexist claims on behalf of Google. Rather, these search suggestions should be seen as a reflection on our search trends and history.

P.S. Search suggestions aren't all one sided, after all a search for "she stupid" does return a suggestion for "he stupid" :-)