Sell your Google stock

[SUBMAN1]

Google is becoming worthless. Advertisers have it so that any search shows 100 pages of advertising and somewhere in that haystack is the needle you are looking for. Google, in my opinion is dropping like a rock, and it won't take long with these kinds of bogus results for it to bring them down as the search engine of choice.

Google won't fall if no takers are around to pick up the slack, but right now, that door is wide open for someone to step in.

<..steps off soapbox...>

-S

[MothBalls]

Would tend to agree with you.

Look at any story on this site.

http://www.upi.com/

Almost every page is just a few paragraphs, surrounded by Google ads and a bunch of other flashing banners. The "content" of most pages is about the size of a postage stamp smothered with advertising.

If you look at the same pages with an adblocker enabled, there's almost nothing there. People are getting tired of having to look at all of this crap. I know I am. Reminds me of the movie Idiocracy.

[TarJak]

Search Engine Marketing or SEM has been a "bubble" market for some time. The problem for both advertisers and ultimately Google is that to stay on top the costs just keep spiralling upwards.

Like all bubbles it must burst at some point.

[Syxx_Killer]

I have thought Google was going down for quite a while now. I remain in the Yahoo camp when it comes to searches. Rarely do I use Google for anything. I like the iGoogle page I set up but I just check the RSS feeds on the page - content not related to Google itself. I have had a Gmail account practically since it first appeared and I haven't used it since. I highly dislike the layout and I don't like the idea of them keeping your messages on their servers even after you delete them from your inbox (or use text in your message itself to generate ads). Basically, I don't trust Google for anything. They're just a huge data miner in disguise.

[Skybird]

Have made less and lesser use of Google myself in the past weeks and months. Use it only for picture search occasionally, there it is unbeaten so far. Every other crawler I tried delivers ar less material when it comes to pics.

[AVGWarhawk]

Status quo. Google is successful and advertisers want to get on the Google board. Google will charge just about anything to make it happen. Next thing you know, it is all advertisements. Gets old very fast. Hence the band aid of a pop up stoppers etc. Nothing more annoying then those stupid dancing people in a refinancing advertisement.

[The WosMan]

I have always maintained that google would take a big dive one day. I believe it is very soon, not only because of the reasons you list but also their investments. Youtube is one of the best examples. I said that when they bought youtube it was a bad decision for liability reasons and I still think it is one big copyright infringement lawsuit waiting to happen. Mark my words on that.

[fatty]

I wouldn't sell just yet. Don't forget, the free search engine is only a fraction of their business.

[Reaves]

I use google for searches but mostly for image and video searches. I still have my homepage as MSN at home so I use that every now and again. Whatever is easier basically.

I used to be a yahoo man but I got used to google somehow.

[orwell]

Have made less and lesser use of Google myself in the past weeks and months. Use it only for picture search occasionally, there it is unbeaten so far. Every other crawler I tried delivers ar less material when it comes to pics.

Really? I must be using it wrong, because I can find just about every pic I NEVER WANTED with google's image search. I much prefer Yahoo's, I can find relevant pictures to the text I input.

As far as the original topic goes, if I had any I definitely wouldn't sell it. Not yet at least, they seem to be realizing that their advertising bubble may be in trouble, so I suspect we'll see a shift in Google priorities to either more offline content, or solid, sustainable online ones, SOME sort of paid service. I can't ever see Google becoming stupid enough to crash and burn entirely, however contractions, and possibly harsh contractions, are coming sometime for their hiring practices and growth.

[Rotary Crewman]

Been a Google user for many years now and will continue to do so. Got so used to it, I know now pretty much which search results are good and which will be an ad or complete garbage.

[SUBMAN1]

Been a Google user for many years now and will continue to do so. Got so used to it, I know now pretty much which search results are good and which will be an ad or complete garbage.The problem is, you shouldn't have to learn what Google is going to give you. 5 years ago, you input a search, and you 'GOT EXACTLY WHAT YOU WANTED' every time. Now you get nothing or little of value.

That is the problem.

To the stock question above - It is not the entire crash and burn you are waiting for, but a minor upset. Bad Press. A media outcry of the results of their engine not working like it should. THe search engine is Googles life and blood. There may be a bigger division, but the search engine is their core. If you trade stocks, it is not the crash and burn I worry about, but the onslaught of ever more negative press which will send you stock in a tailspin. It creeps up on you slowly, not quickly. Right now may be Googles peak price - that is what I am saying.

-S

[Foxtrot]

You are right but my stomach and my money comes first so I won't sell a single share :)

[Peto]

Invest in Euros. Gold may come in handy too.

;)