Amazon Dumping Google for Microsoft?

theodp writes "How do you reward Google for letting your CEO buy stock for six cents a share? If you're Amazon, you dump Google for Windows Live Search to power subsidiary Alexa, who has not yet commented on the switch. Other Windows Live Search sightings are being observed at Amazon subsidiary a9.com." From the Search Engine Lowdown article: "The Alexa toolbar's gotten Alexa a bad rap from privacy advocates, though in function it's effect on search results is similar to click stream data that Google, Yahoo, MSN, Ask may or may not be using in their determinations of relevance. Wall points out that 'A9 is still powered by Google...' A9 is Amazon's primary search project. Wall wonders, however, if the change in Alexa indicates a larger coming change in Amazon's relationship to Google. I agree. In fact, I see the move as the first Google Dump in the post eBay's-seeking-partners-against-Google era."

a9 is now also powered by windows live search

[Kamran]

a9 is also now powered by windows live search.
Jeff Bezos shouldn't be criticised for buying class a stock at 6 cents. it wasn't a gift from Google, at the time it was Google needing his money.

Alexa is spyware?

[digitaldc]

I remember doing a spyware search and removing Alexa since it was deemed spyware.

You can read this page [imilly.com] to figure out how to configure it, or if you can just remove it altogether which was much easier to do.

Re:Google or MS

[EuphoricaL]

We only ever really have a choice between a Giant Douche and a Turd Sandwich!!!

Partners...

[kibbled_bits]

If anyone hasn't read the Google interview in Linux Format (Chris DiBona) I highly recommend it. It really does a good job of conveying Google's position on many issues. Regardless I can't see how most people on this forum would consider Google <= M$.

In a nutshell:

LXF: In what ways would you say that Google is sponsoring open source?

CD: Actually I don't like the word 'sponsoring'. I don't like sponsoring, I don't like 'subsidising', I don't like 'giving back'. The words I like are 'working with' them. We see them as our peers in computer science...

Maybe you don't believe this is 100% true, you can at least agree that Microsoft's position are opposite of this. Not only they not our peers in computer science, but they seem arrogant enough to think they can dictate computer science.

"Letting him buy stock"?!?

[tji]

> How do you reward Google for letting your CEO buy stock for six cents a share?

Either this is an intentional troll, or you have no clue about financial matters.

Bezos was an early investor in Google, when they were just getting off the ground. He gave them money ('angel funding') to allow them to expand. The agreement in that situation is that Mr. Bezos then owns a percentage of the company, giving him stock at a low price after an IPO.

Google didn't "let him buy" stock. Bezos invested in Google very early on, and he got big $$ when Google's stock went through the roof.

Google is competing with every web developer.

[Anonymous Coward]

Yup, I feel the pinch as a web developer. I feel that Google is competing with all of us. I am not talking about web developer 'the job'. I am talking about web developer 'the innovative entrepreneur'.

This is kind of like how software developers have felt about Microsoft all these years.

Honestly, I hate Google more than I hate Microsoft, because the Web is my bread and butter (and not Windows applications), and Google will kick me eventually.

i thought you were kidding..

[jasonhamilton]

I thought you were kidding when you said it was slow. So I tried it out for myself, the iframe-ish search results is unusable. I can't even look at the results beyond the first page...

Microsoft ..... Google

[Anonymous Coward]

Microsoft is trying to do anything they can to cut out google. Google helps many open source projects and Microsoft does not want any of these to catch on because they will lose money. Microsoft is very PO'd about losing some its best talent to Google. Balmer is even known to go into mad fits when anyone mentions google. I don't hate Microsoft but I do hate how they do business and how they are a monopoly but will not admit it. I suspect that Amazon got a lot of money to switch. Most business runs on the bottom line and ethics, morals, anything that is suppose to be right is tossed aside.

I do commend google on going up against the government about the privacy of its customers. (Our corrupt, stupid government is another topic.) This shows they actually want to protect their privacy, unlike the rest of them. I used google because of they stick to their word. The rest bowed down to the government in 1 second....

Powered by Google? No..

[brunes69]

Wall points out that 'A9 is still powered by Google...' A9 is Amazon's primary search project

Doesn't look like it to me [a9.com]

Top right corner - "Powered by Windows Live"

There isn't even the ability to add Google anymore. And their news search is now MSN News rather than Google News.

Re:Alexa, Google... Hmm, no difference *there*!

[Irish_Samurai]

Actually, I don't think it's advertisers. I think its PR people. The two are not the same.

Actually - the terms Marketing, Advertising, and Public Relations are all switched in and out as if they were the same - they're not. These are the definitions as they function in how I use them in my business. Your mileage may vary.

Advertising - The art/science of building/designing media that best leverages the media vehicle's strengths and weaknesses to deliver a message developed by marketing.

Marketing - Analyzing the current business/economic/social/cultural landscape to create/discover/define a target for a product or service. This target is in turn analyzed for the purpose of creating the most effective message to motivate the target to take a desired action.

Public Relations - The art/science of using Marketing and Advertising as applied methods for influencing public opinion, injecting a designed piece of "common knowldge" into a population, or damage control to make the consumer/revenue generating Marketing and Advertising initiatives of a company easier over the long run.

Inherently there is nothing evil about any of these things - the way companies use them is where the evil begins. Just as the wedge itself isn't evil. Its also not evil when you sharpen the edge and strap it to a stick. It still isn't evil when you cleave someones head with it - the weilder of it is. AND - the weilder is only evil if the cleaving was done out of malice or spite. Somehow I don't see self defense as evil.

Quit blaming disciplines as being inherently evil/good. Not only is it inaccurate, but it takes soe of the blame away from the companies who do evil things with these tools and distributes it amongst everyone using them - regardless of their use is ethical/moral or not.

Re:Why people Google-bash

[rm69990]

What other choice did Google have? Seriously, everyone bitches at Google, but what would you rather them do? I've asked Chinese people I work with this very question, and they say it would be absurd for Google to withdraw their Chinese services, and wouldn't help the Chinese people at all. If every single Chinese person I've asked supports Google's actions, why do people of other nationalities have so much trouble doing so?

Let's say Google withdrew from China and left people in China with a barely accessible Google.com, Google would get to keep their good-guy image, but would it actually help the Chinese people? Do you think the Chinese government is going to allow a little web company to boss them around?

The Chinese people have to endure censorship, with or without Google's participation. Why take away a service that people in China find useful?

I think the very fact that Google is staying in China, after it hurt their stock price and their good-guy image, is a testament to the determination of the company's executives in doing what they feel is the right thing to do, and I respect the company more for it, irregardless of what anyone else thinks.

Flame away!