Quote from vhehn:
how do you replicate the the fact that billions of people have it in their mind that search=google. its not the algorithm that is valuable its the brand name. the phrase "i googled it" isnt going away easily. how does a competitor unseat google? lower prices? wont work, google is free for the consumer.
i am not trying to argue that google isnt overvalued at this time. just that the possibilities are there for growth.
Quote from Sparohok:
But it's not free to the <i>customer</i>.
Martin
Quote from vhehn:
the customer has no choice in the matter.
Quote from Sparohok:
True for sponsored links, not true for AdWords.
Incidentally, further evidence that Google's brand is not necessarily durable: they didn't pay anything for it. Google has done virtually no advertising. It is a brand that established itself based almost entirely on word of mouth. All they needed was the best search product. So, I would argue that Google's technological advantage and their brand advantage are one and the same.
To play my own devil's advocate: past search transitions occured when most Internet users were highly engaged in the Internet (geeks, in other words). As adoption spreads within the general public, it's possible that conventional brand loyalty may become stronger.
Martin
Quote from Sparohok:
I remeber when search=lycos. I remember when search=altavista. If you think Google is unassailable, you weren't around when Alta Vista took over search mindshare almost overnight.
</i>.
Martin