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My 2 featured articles for the week ending June 2, 2006:

Archived blogs for the week of May 29, 2006

1173 - June 1, 2006 - 4.57 PM EST

Yahoo's new Internet video service

Yahoo said today it will reprogram its Internet video service and will make it look more like YouTube.com, an online novelty that has gained a somewhat large audience in 2005. YouTube.com is a free online service that encourages users to upload and share homemade video mini movies.

Under the changes unveiled Thursday, Yahoo will store homemade videos on its own site for the first time as it attempts to build a platform for people to browse and rate the clips. The videos will be separated into different categories, including a section devoted to the most-watched selections.

Those features mirror YouTube, which has become the Web's most popular video channel since a pair of twentysomething technology whizzes started the San Mateo, Calif.-based company a year ago.

Now, Internet heavyweights like Sunnyvale, Calif.-based Yahoo are trying to chip away at YouTube's early lead as the rapidly growing number of high-speed Internet connections make it easier to transfer and watch online videos.

Just two weeks ago, Google Inc. retooled its video service so a special piece of software would no longer be required to upload clips to the online search engine leader. Meanwhile, Time Warner Inc.'s AOL is testing a service, called UnCut Video, that accepts clips.

Since launching its video service in late 2004, Yahoo has focused on indexing the clips available on other Web sites.

Although the company intends to continue indexing material from other sites, Yahoo is betting it will be able to lure more visitors and give them more reason to stick around longer by creating a unique video library through submissions from its 208 million registered users.

"We felt this was a necessary next step in our evolution," said Jeff Karnes, Yahoo's director of multimedia search. Yahoo has been adding more attractions to its Web site to maintain its status as the Web's most trafficked destination and spur even more spending by advertisers — the main source of the company's revenue.

Posted on Businessblog™

1172 - May 31, 2006 - 5.14 PM EST

Google trying to be friendlier with Wall Street

During an investment conference call this week, the top management at Google told Wall Street it expected to diversify into different markets such as print advertising. Google also stated it will continue to hire additional workers in the San Francisco Bay area where it is located. On the other hand, the company ruled out any interest whatsover in designing a new Internet browser that would directly compete with Microsoft's Internet Explorer, or any other Web browser for that matter.

Shares of Google quickly went into negative territory after the conference call began.

As a public company, Google has often been criticized for not offering investment analysts enough guidance about its financial affairs and immediate plans for the future.

Google's stock is down about 10% so far this year, after increasing more than 115 percent in 2005. However, Wall Street investors had little reason to be concerned about the company's fundamentals. The company reported much higher results for its first quarter.

Sales at Google were higher by 79% and net earnings increased by about 60% from 2005. Offering selected advertising based on specific search terms is the company's core competency and, generally speaking, Internet advertising is very healthy and growing rapidly.

Additionally, Google has gained market share from its competitors for the month of April 2006. But Google, which refuses to offer the investment community any sales or any earnings guidance has been extremely tight-lipped about any of its corporate strategy.

To make matters worse, the company has even made some high-profile public relations mistakes in 2006 that have raised concerns of many investors. Google missed 4th quarter net earnings forecasts by a wide margin in January, the company's 1st earnings disappointment since its first IPO almost two years ago. Google blamed all of that on a higher tax rate that really surprised every analyst on the Street.

Adding fuel to the fire, in March of this year, the company disclosed in a regulatory filing with the SEC that it mistakenly put up slides detailing out-of-date financial targets during its analyst day Web cast!

In addition to all of this, some investors are worried about whether increased competition from Yahoo, Microsoft (MSN) and Ask.com could seriously harm Google's growth prospects.

On May 24, Yahoo announced a broader alliance with Internet auction provider eBay, an initiative that many industry observers interpreted as a way for both companies to more effectively fight Google.

Also, some people think the company needs to do more to diversify beyond its search-based advertising roots in order to avoid what some have termed it a "one-trick pony".

Posted on Businessblog™

1171 - May 30, 2006 - 2.57 PM EST

Can Google compete with TV advertising?

Rumor has it that Google wants to build a TV-version of its search engine. Google believes this would rival traditional TV broadcasting.

In fact, Chief executive Eric Schmidt told the media over the weekend: “At the most, people currently have access to only 500 (or thereabout) TV channels,” said Schmidt.

“They should have access to everything! That is where Google is heading.”

As they start preparing to make the transition from the PC to the television, ISPs (Internet service providers) and broadcasters alike are combining their efforts in developing electronic program guides (EPGs).

Those so-called program guides would enable viewers with a broadband Internet connection to choose from a far wider range of video and film entertainment than is currently available.

And of course, Google seriously believes it can offer a world-­beating EPG.

“You have to look at what an electronic program guide is. It is just a search engine and that is what Google does best,” said Schmidt.

Some ISPs such as British Telecom intend to limit viewing choice to content suppliers they have selected. But IT giants such as Microsoft and Intel are determined to harness the full power of the Internet with its virtually unlimited choice into every TV and into every household.

Connecting a Microsoft Media Center player or an X-Box console will enable consumers to use a digital TV to browse the Internet for whatever video content they wish.

Posted on Businessblog™

1170 - May 29, 2006 - 5.57 PM EST

Google still the biggest search engine

A new report reveals that Google accounted for half of all US searches conducted in April, according to research firm Nielsen/NetRatings.

Google was followed by Yahoo and MSN, with 21.9 percent and 11.1 percent, respectively. But Nielsen/NetRatings said that Google isn't the leading Web portal in the US, nor does it control the social networking scene.

According to Nielsen, Google has gained an additional 3 percent market share during the previous twelve months. This isn't much, but still enough to conclude that "Google Mania" is far from over.

This doesn’t mean that all should be doom an gloom at Yahoo and Microsoft headquarters either. Search activity continues to increase and according to NetRatings, Yahoo boosted its number of searches over 27 percent in 2005, and MSN by about 10 percent.

Still, Google is the champion with a growth of 34 percent year over year-- impressive numbers nevertheless. In a related announcement, NetRatings said that April’s top 10 social networking sites collectively grew 47 percent year over year, “increasing from an unduplicated unique audience of 46.8 million last year to 68.8 million in April 2006, reaching 45 percent of active Web users.”

Social networking sites are sites that allow users to upload and comment on content. This is interesting also from a search engine viewpoint, as these sites are heavy producers of content, the stuff the search engines thrive on.

Posted on Businessblog™

Copyright © Serge Thibodeau 2006. All rights reserved.

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