Looking back at 2008, the biggest newsmaker in the search engine realm was Google – again.В Whether it was the Yahoo! acquisition saga, its continued dominance of search engine market share, or its acquisitions of companies such as Begun and Omnisio, the ramifications of Google’s actions were followed carefully across the web and in the Search Concepts blog.
At some point, one can’t help but compare Google’s popularity, power, and of course, spending, with that of the New York Yankees.В While the Yankees’ success is not quite analogous to that of Google in recent years, other trends are similar.В For example, the list of Google’s acquisitions over the past seven years is staggering.В The Yankees, after missing the playoffs for the first time in 14 years, committed $423.5 million to three free agents this off-season and now boast a roster that includes the four highest paid players in baseball.
Both have the evil empire reputation in many circles, as Google is regularly described as Machiavellian and the Yankees spending habits are criticized as being “bad for baseball.” Neither seems to be completely recession proof, but both still play by different rules even during an economic crisis.
As the Yankees have found in recent years, spending the most money doesn’t guarantee success.В Will Google learn the same lesson in 2009?В Could the sometimes criticized acquisition of DoubleClick be Google’s Hideki Irabu?В Or does Google’s dominance in search engine share insulate it from acquisition mistakes?В Google can’t afford to take its position for granted, because in the ever evolving and amoebous Internet world, the next big company is always lurking and ready to dethrone the reigning heavyweight.В Just ask Yahoo! or Microsoft.
