The day the internet died
From just a few documents linked together, the internet has grown virus like, infecting most our lives. In most households, a day is not complete without checking the news, watching videos or playing online games.
From these humble beginnings, the internet brought the promise of free access for all.
This universal phrase has not only transformed many lives but has created many businesses and services along the way.
Google, the Microsoft of the internet, is an amazing example, there’s nothing you can’t get for free from Google and in the process magically making money out of ‘free’.
So when did the internet die? Ironically the day Google was created.
Google understood how to really make money out of the internet, and in fact they still do. They created an ‘engine’ that would list everything, for free. And with that one single act ensured Google would be the one source of reference for the internet, after all if they list everything, why go anywhere else?
Of course the truth in never that simple, Google ensured ‘websites’ had to meet certain guidelines if they wanted to be listed. This one act drove the term ‘Google Friendly’ to the heart of every developer and marketing guru. Furthermore by making these ‘search algorithms’ secret in turn created tons of content on the web whose only aim is to tell you how to get listed on Google.
With Google’s inherent viral nature, it has generated the largest free marketing campaign in history of the modern world and not since the publication of the Bible has anything caused such a shift in public behaviour.
Google then pushed its own envelope and created Adsense. Not only did Google create the ultimate revenue stream, but by offering website owners the chance of generating free money for those who changed the content of their web pages, the changed web pages got better page ranking, which got more traffic, making more money for Google.
To prove my point, type in any search phrase, into any search engine. I bet 9 out of 10 of those listed on the first page will carry Google’s Adsense advertising. Most of these site owners are not making vast sums of money, but are working hard on Google behalf to make Google one of the riches companies in the world.
So what’s wrong with everyone getting a little richer in a modern world of free speech and democracy?
Google is a American public corporation, I find myself asking, what would happen if its agenda changed, or it became owned by a single political party?
And if its views became so corrupt what would be the alternative?
The internet is dead, long live the ‘Googlenet’
This article was written by Mark Excell of websitesbymark.co.uk