Google's Illegality

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   Rupert Taylorposted 2 months ago

   Google has been found to have acted illegally in crushing competition to online searches.
   
   https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0k44x6mge3o
   
   Does anybody have the foggiest idea what this might mean for beleaguered HubPages writers? Answers in plain English please.

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      SerenityHaloposted 2 months agoin reply to this

      Going forward there is a slight possibility of more wiggle room for search engines. It will need to be a continued effort to break down the monopolization of Google because it is such an enormous giant.
      
      For online writers, I don’t think anything in the near future should be expected. It’s possible that over time it will be easier to have more presence as a writer, but this depends on if other search engines can take up some of the market. Or if Google changes things to make things more open… that’s doubtful.
      
      Google’s monopoly has made it hard for writers to have their pieces spread and gain traffic. The algorithms it uses has made it claggy, so to speak. Google has stood in the way as a gatekeeper, one that for the most part benefits itself.
      
      I’d say the news is mostly neutral for writers. I imagine there isn’t going to be an immediate change that’s meaningful. Perhaps after a few years things will be different.
      
      ****
      
      I’m not including anything in here about AI and what kind of threat it is at the same time as all of this.

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   2. 61

      Grip55posted 2 months agoin reply to this

      I am new to Hub Pages and have been reading the forums. At first I thought wow, such unhappy people.
      But then I looked at my articles, and I thought yes, it's just cents a day, but who does this for the love of writing. Yes, I guess me. And you can't save the site, by complaining about it. These are very tough times everywhere, and I hope that people will find this site a source of enjoyment, because I certainly do. Thank You Hub Pages for this opportunity.

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         theraggededgeposted 2 months agoin reply to this

         Yes, a bunch of unhappy people. When you go from four figures per month to barely scraping three, it tends to have that effect. For a long time we have been writing in order to stand still. Now it feels like it's not worth the effort and we are witnessing the death of something very dear to us.
         
         For people who write for the joy of it and not to feed their family, it's a great site.

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            WriterJanisposted 8 weeks agoin reply to this

            Bev, that is such a huge drop.

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         Kenna McHughposted 2 months agoin reply to this

         HubPages is not what it used to be. Without sure footing, it's so sad to experience because during it's hey day we made money. HP was transparent and they responded to our inquiries.

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         Gregory DeVictorposted 2 months agoin reply to this

         Many authors who write at HubPages have been here for 10-15+ years. Sometime this month, I will celebrate my 10-year anniversary at HP.
         
         I see that you joined HubPages about 10 days ago.
         
         Over the past several years, many writers here have suffered major losses in terms of page views, impressions, and earnings. There are many reasons for this decline, and there are also numerous threads on this forum that address this highly-critical issue.
         
         Perhaps you should take some of your time and read and reread some of these threads to gain at least a "superficial" understanding of what has been taking place at HubPages for the past several years.
         
         However, you will never completely understand what has taken place at HP over the course of time unless you were actually "here" during that period.
         
         Like my colleague Bev aptly stated above, if you are here simply "for the joy of it and not to feed their family, it's a great site."

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2. 97

   PaulGoodman67posted 2 months ago

   It may open up the world of search and advertising, which would be great. But don't expect anything to happen soon. Google may win on appeal and even if they don't, it will take time for the effects of the judgment to have an impact.
   
   This is what I've been arguing for years, though. Google's monopoly over search and related advertising has clearly been unhealthy.

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3. 92

   EricDockettposted 2 months ago

   We should be careful what we wish for. As satisfying as it would be to see Google go down, imagine a world where we had to optimize content for six different search engines.
   
   I don't want to see Google broken up. I'd rather see them operate ethically and fairly without their present obvious biases toward their own products and services, partners, and political and social agendas.
   
   In other words, they should go back to being an excellent index of websites, which they currently are not.

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      PaulGoodman67posted 2 months agoin reply to this

      Monopolies of power, whether it's economic or political, always end up corrupt, I believe.
      
      And once they've turned the corner and gone bad, they almost never reform themselves of their own accord.
      
      Why should they? There's zero incentive.
      
      Competition is good. This isn't just about the search, it's about how they've tied it in with the advertising, which they also control.

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         Solarasposted 2 months agoin reply to this

         And with their stolen AI snippets, as well as replacing websites in SERPs with crackerjack Reddit and Quora conversations, it will be information they control. 
         
         They were trying to give readers the best product by their metrics.  I think they are now interested in selling perspectives to the highest bidders.  Like Rush Limbaugh used to do. Big sites, with big backers, with a profit to make, will reshape history books and what information can be gleaned from the Internet.  It's the biggest power grab in the history of mankind.

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            EricDockettposted 2 months agoin reply to this

            The problem is, the average person doesn't care about any of this. They don't see it like we do, because they don't have to deal with search traffic like we do.
            
            They get quicker, faster answers, or easy shopping results and they are happy. And, wow, it's AI generated! Isn't that cool!
            
            They don't think about where those results come from, or what business are hurt.
            
            That's why people use Google. Because it gives them what they want, quickly. When they say are better, they aren't wrong.
            
            But it's not really the full story.

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               Solarasposted 2 months agoin reply to this

               The problem with those fast results (AI) is they are frequently wrong. I looked up "What is an Ironman competition."  It gave the results with the distances quoted as miles, when the distances it was quoting were actually for kilometers. 
               
               I see what you are saying.  People like easy and often don't care if the info is correct or not, especially if the answer suits their narrative. 
               
               In an era of book banning and revisionist history writing, I can foresee a much more sinister turn of events, depending on who is running Google. I don't think there is any egalitarian, for the benefit of mankind, mandate at corporate anymore.

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               SerenityHaloposted 2 months agoin reply to this

               Actually, I think most people think Google has gotten worse. It takes longer to find information sometimes, it comes across as spammy, and sometimes your search only yields a long list of other questions. Google is losing traffic to younger audiences, and they’ve tried to gain those people back by being hip, but I think it’s somewhat like a grandparent taking on the trends of a teen. Also, AI has made some searches completely invalid because it’s obvious that the information is false or too whimsical.

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      Kenna McHughposted 2 months agoin reply to this

      Good point, Eric!

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4. 97

   Rupert Taylorposted 2 months ago

   "Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely." Lord Acton observed this in 1887 and it's as true today as it was then.
   
   Another quote, this time from Reuters: "Alphabet Inc's (GOOGL.O) Google reported 27% higher U.S. lobbying expenditures for 2021 compared to 2020, spending $9.6 million for the year, according to the Senate lobbying disclosure database."
   
   With that kind of dosh swilling around Washington it's unlikely many politicians will have the guts to break up Google through anti-trust laws.
   
   AltaVista, Dogpile, and others are still out there. We just need to wean ourselves off the big G.

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      Solarasposted 2 months agoin reply to this

      Big G gives my crap for search engine results.  I am going to give dogpile a try.

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   Venkatachari Mposted 2 months ago

   It is a well-known fact that Google promotes its own search results (those results that bring them income). Though it highlights some really niche content at top results; placing them immediately after ads on the front page.
   
   The general public is always satisfied with whatever results they are seeing. Those search results are mostly satisfactory.

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6. 61

   Grip55posted 2 months ago

   Growing Potatoes in a clothes basket, made Google Search. It is not number 1 but it is on there. I am so pleased. That is three articles that are indexed on Google search. I have no complaint with them, - 3 out of 7 articles I've written. I hope it keeps up, I could use the help.

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7. 61

   Grip55posted 2 months ago

   I have no desire to re-read unpleasant posts. I spent 41 years working standing on my feet, and now that I am retired from the Air Force and a second job I worked for 21 years, I intend to enjoy it. I can't imagine depending on sitting behind a keyboard and typing to feed my family. I also went to war zone in the military, did you do that, perhaps you did.
   I will enjoy the experience- I just didn't think complaining about it solved anything. But what do I know right, I have only been here 10 days, but I made Google search three times, and if I want to enjoy that, I have the right to do so. Good luck to all of you in working it out.

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      theraggededgeposted 2 months agoin reply to this

      That's great, but my articles used to rank at one and two in Google search. Now they don't. If you are typing the title in, then yes, Google will show it in the results. However, people rarely search for the title; they search for keywords. That's when you know that Google likes your work.
      
      I have almost 12 million views - I don't think I'm going to get there the way things are going.
      
      It feels as though you are judging us for being upset at what is happening to the site and then pushing the 'I'm alright, Jack' trope. I'm glad you are enjoying writing here but please remember, we were all at that stage at one time and many are grieving what has been lost. Perhaps allow us to express our opinions without judgment.

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   2. 97

      PaulGoodman67posted 2 months agoin reply to this

      Greg - You've been here ten days and you're attacking the regulars. If you don't like the negativity, just ignore it.
      
      This site used to be a way more positive place. Part of it is that, yes, writers got used to earning dollars rather than cents for their work, so now they're unhappy. But there are other problems with the site that are just as serious.
      
      Anybody in any line of work will get upset if they are getting less money for doing the same job.

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      Kenna McHughposted 2 months agoin reply to this

      I hear you, Greg! Thank you for your service. I have a nephew in the Marines, a decorated hero twice. Please understand that HubPages used to flourish. Now, it's barely holding on. Unfortunately, you arrived at its worst. The management used to be transparent—today nothing. We get the brunt of mismanagement, and that's all we see. It's disheartening.

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      SerenityHaloposted 2 months agoin reply to this

      “I can't imagine depending on sitting behind a keyboard and typing to feed my family.”
      
      Why are you even saying this? Do you think writers are lazy? Or any person who works at a computer?

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         Misbah786posted 2 months agoin reply to this

         +1

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   Venkatachari Mposted 2 months ago

   Solaras made a good point. Lots of book banning and revisionist rewrite of History is going on everywhere. It is People's Power or Bureaucratic Caprice.

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9. 97

   PaulGoodman67posted 2 months ago

   Some people seem confused.
   
   Just to be absolutely clear: the court judgment is *not* about the quality of Google Search.
   
   It's about:
   
   1. How Google crushes business rivals unfairly and sometimes illegally.
   
   2. How Google uses its search and advertising arms in a coordinated way to maximize its earnings using underhand methods. (Google always claims that the search and advertising are completely separate and independent).

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      Kenna McHughposted 2 months agoin reply to this

      Google favors advertisers.

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10. 97

    Rupert Taylorposted 2 months ago

    I tried Medium but it didn't work for me. I don't write personal experience stuff on the grounds that my life is only of interest to me, and I'm quite sure the world is not waiting for my opinion on whether or not it's appropriate to wear socks with sandals. I'm not even interested in my opinion on that.
    
    My interest is in writing fact-based stories on events and people. Reporting if you will - what I've done my entire working life.
    
    I posted about 40 articles on the platform and one month I earned eight cents.

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       Misbah786posted 2 months agoin reply to this

       That's sad, Rupert! Engagement is key on Medium. I remember reading your work a few times, but I haven't seen you around much.
       
       I understand that writers who are used to creating fact-based articles, like we do on HP, might struggle with the storytelling style that Medium demands. I had a lot of trouble with it at first too, but with time, I suppose you learn. If you're willing to give it a try, it's worth it!

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11. 85

    Solarasposted 2 months ago

    I don't mind people recommending other writing sites.  I think, that unless someone reports you, there is no one paying attention to what is going on over here in the land of the walking dead.
    
    If there were a terrific site to recycle articles on, I would be all over that. 
    
    Had they announced, we are revamping Discover to make it into a massive site of the best information, I might have thought great.  But all of this is ad hoc.  First we hear its an experiment, and now its a race to the finish.  Where the finish line ends is a mystery to everyone, including management. 
    
    I m hopeful for a short term bump, but I think we will find ourselves like Squidoo, with no white knight to rescue us.

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       Kenna McHughposted 2 months agoin reply to this

       Barbara, you have a point. It is frustrating because HP lacks transparency. Their promises pale in comparison to their actions.

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       Misbah786posted 2 months agoin reply to this

       Thank you, Barbara! I’ve heard great things about Discover being a top spot for gaining more exposure. Personally, my articles there always seem to do better than those on niche sites. I wonder if that’s just me or if others have noticed the same thing. I remember when I first joined, there was always a buzz in the forums about how to submit and get work approved for niche sites, but that doesn’t seem to happen much anymore.
       
       I know I get reported quite a bit, but I try not to let it bother me. I prefer to keep a positive outlook. I shared that bit of info because I thought it might be helpful to other writers, not to self-promote. But ultimately, it’s up to others to decide if it’s useful or not. I appreciate you, my friend!  ❤️

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