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It's Yahoo Plus eBay vs. Google 113

Posted by Zonk from the i'll-form-the-voip-solution dept.
Octagon Most writes "Yahoo and eBay have announced a broad partnership in their efforts to compete against Google and Microsoft." From the article: "In addition, Yahoo Web search features will be integrated into a co-branded version of the eBay toolbar, and the companies said they would explore developing 'click-to-call' ad technologies on their respective Web sites. 'Click-to-call' provides a link inside an advertisement that allows consumers to directly call the advertiser to pursue a transaction."
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It's Yahoo Plus eBay vs. Google More

It's Yahoo Plus eBay vs. Google

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  • Ad wars, shmad wars (Score:4, Funny)

    by BadAnalogyGuy ( 945258 ) <BadAnalogyGuy@gmail.com> on Thursday May 25, 2006 @12:08PM (#15402353)
    It's all pretty irrelevant to me how hard these companies are working for my eyeballs. I don't even use the internet.

  • eBay on Google (Score:5, Interesting)

    by goldaryn ( 834427 ) on Thursday May 25, 2006 @12:09PM (#15402359) Homepage
    This begs the question: have eBay now stopped (or stemmed at least) their ubiquitous Google search ad campaign? I did a few quick searches and didn't see as many eBay links as usual...
  • If eBay dies and they decide to auction off the assets, how would they do it without themselves? Juast another paradox...

    • mod parent up (Score:1)

      by Anonymous Coward
      interesting comment would buy form agian A++++++++++
  • I think the threat of Microsoft and eBay to Google is overstated CNBC hype and that the stock market is overreacting to this. Keep in mind that Google's fundamentals include a 65 price to earnings ratio, the improvement of which has exceeded their market cap's growth, and has a one-year projection of under thirty. A 65 P/E is pretty good for a company whose revenues tend to double a lot. Even more impressive, GOOG's earnings-per-share is almost five times that of MSFT's and eight times eBay's. Regarding bra

    • Uh... shush... don't give everyone the same idea!

      Besides, it is Yahoo and eBay teaming up... Microsoft is doing their own thing as usual, since Yahoo rejected their offer to partner up a while back. So the new word in the dictionary will either be Yahbay or eHoo... I'm voting on eHoo... that could totally be a verb. Go eHoo it!

      Yahbay sounds like something a yak would say...

    • Google's fundamentals include a 65 price to earnings ratio...When news like this hits and people start selling their GOOG shares, scoop them up because the price has solid support in the fundamentals.

      But you may want to think about this [wikipedia.org]

      [a P/E ratio of] 28+ - A company whose shares have a very high P/E either really does have an exceptionally rosy future or the stock may be the subject of a speculative bubble.

      A high P/E ratio may *reflect* a company's good fundamentals (e.g. high expected revenue gr

    • Re:attn bargain hunters (Score:5, Informative)

      by CaymanIslandCarpedie ( 868408 ) on Thursday May 25, 2006 @02:03PM (#15403443) Journal
      WARNING!!!! Above is a good example of why you should never take stock tips from the internet! Lets just take a look at a couple of my favorite nuggets ;-)

      Keep in mind that Google's fundamentals include a 65 price to earnings ratio, the improvement of which has exceeded their market cap's growth........Even more impressive, GOOG's earnings-per-share is almost five times that of MSFT's

      OK, first about the P/E ratio. The above makes it sound like a high P/E ratio is a quality you should look for in attractive investments. DON'T DO THAT!!!!! The P/E ratio is basically how much you have to pay for $1 in earnings. Its price per share over earnings per share. So a high P/E means your paying more for each $1 in earnings. The next confusing part is about Goggle's earnings-per-share being almost 5x's what MS has. While that is true, it is completly meaningless by itself. To put it in perspective Google's earnings-per-share (eps) IS just over 4.5x MS's (eps). However, since Google's stock price is over 16x what MS's is you are paying over 16x the price to earn 4.5x more per share.

      I am not here to make any recommendations on any stock, but the above is just complete non-sense. A stock with a high P/E ratio could be a great investment (as could a stock with a low P/E). The thing to remember a high P/E ratio generally relates to higher risk. The higher the the P/E ratio the higher expectations the market has for the stock. Now its easy to see that and think "well if the market has that high of expectations, it must be a good investment!" but you must remember (as the P/E ratio points out) those expectations are already factored into the stocks current price. So for the stock to raise, the company has to surpass those already high expectations. However, if the company has completely amazing results but still don't quite match expectations then the stock will dip (or fall).

      Another MAJOR thing to consider when looking at any stock in the internet search sector is the expectations (and thus current stock price and P/E ratio) aren't completly based on "who will win" type questions between Google, MS, Yahoo, etc. A large portion of those expectations for each company is based on the forcasted growth of the entire sector. The forcasts are really amazing and that points for good times for companies in that sector but again introduces risk for an investment in any company in that sector. I forget the exact numbers but just for an example lets say its forcasted that spending on on-line advertising has 10x todays number being spent annually by 2010. Now lets say Google wipes everyone else off the board and is the lone on-line ad provider by 2008. Now thats great news, but if in the interm the forcasted growth for the sector just isn't meeting expectations you could still see a drop in Googles price because expecations as a whole aren't being met.

      OK the sample scenerio is a bit ridiculous, but it does hopefully show the complexity of the market and the types of things which must be considered in contrast of the original posters wacked out ideas about the market ;-)
  • ...they can stop trying to install toolbars into my frickin' web browser. No, I don't want another upteenth widget that reduces my vertical viewing area, I don't want your special Yahoo! browser bundled with Internet service, and I don't want you to install your toolbar when all I want is desktop search! Someone stop the insanity!

    That's my opinion, anyway. I'm sure there are those people out there who looooove their toolbars.

    • Amen! (Score:2, Insightful)

      by mpapet ( 761907 )
      "Partnership" means flashing ebay ads in the Yahoo toolbar. Phuleeze!
    • And most of all, I really don't want the spyware associated with your toolbar.

      I guess my days of purchasing off Ebay may be just about over.
      • I guess my days of purchasing off Ebay may be just about over.

        Why? Who says you need an eBay or Yahoo toolbar to buy (or sell) stuff on eBay? Unless eBay or Yahoo absolutely require the installation of such software (not likely, since requiring such software usually prevents some class of users from being able to use the service) there's nothing that says you have to accept their spyware.

    • Re:If Yahoo and Google want to make me happy... (Score:4, Insightful)

      by lawpoop ( 604919 ) on Thursday May 25, 2006 @12:29PM (#15402581) Homepage Journal
      "I'm sure there are those people out there who looooove their toolbars."

      I doubt it. I think it's people who don't understand computers that well, and wait on the genius computer experts to give them the next great computer thing that will make their lives happier. Right now the answer is the toolbar.

      Most people don't understand computers well enough to apprehend the potential. They can't fully understand the UI problems they face, and therefore they also can't think of creative solutions to those problems.

      So the management of companies like Yahoo! and eBay, in the effort to increase marketshare and make more money, tell their developers to create newer and better toolbars, which are just devices to improve the marketshare of the toolbar owners. Mom & Pop computer users hear about the great new toolbars that are in the pipeline, and think all their problems will be solved in short order.

      We are still in the glow of the vast communications improvements that computers have afforded the average person -- email, websites, online banking. That revolution hasn't yet been fully co-opted by marketers who aren't making new revolutionary technology, but instead just fight for existing marketshare. So people still see computers as having the potential to revolutionize their life, and haven't yet become jaded to the constant barrage of marketing and sales pitches that will eventually take over computers, too.
    • I agree. These flood of useless toolbars seems like the the new lame excuse for a poor business plan. Give up Yahoo/Ebay! We don't want them. Heck, I don't even care for Google's.
    • I have no use for the yahoo toolbar but I do have the google toolbar in my firefox. Well, part of it anyway... I'm using google's search box/button and the autofill button. I've moved them to my other toolbars, so I can use them without wasting space. I also have the web developer toolbar, and leave it displayed constantly, because I'm frequently poking around the source of other sites than my own. (Obviously... MINE looks like crap. Getting assigned the website at work and not having broadband at home can
    • Right on! Down with toolbars! Power to the people!

      ...I have some PTO saved up, anyone want to have a march or a sit-in?

    • toolbars are strictly for tools...

  • What will they name it? (Score:4, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 25, 2006 @12:10PM (#15402381)
    Yabay or eHoo?

  • Heh.. (Score:5, Funny)

    by goldaryn ( 834427 ) on Thursday May 25, 2006 @12:11PM (#15402395) Homepage
    TFA: Yahoo and eBay said they do not expect the partnership to have a material impact on their financial results this year.

    Expect a statement soon from Google saying they agree :-)
    • " TFA: Yahoo and eBay said they do not expect the partnership to have a material impact on their financial results this year.

      Expect a statement soon from Google saying they agree :-)      "

      Translation: Aww goog, just buy us, it's better than rolling your own. Please?
      Goog: We only buy things that work. Go away.

  • IE Only? (Score:4, Interesting)

    by BiggyP ( 466507 ) <philh.theopencd@org> on Thursday May 25, 2006 @12:15PM (#15402432) Homepage Journal
    And do they plan to continue confusing ebay users into sticking with Internet Explorer and leaving them more at risk than users without the false sense of security offered by the Ebay toolbar?
  • Google is one of the good guys (along with Apple and Nintendo). Always will root for the good guys over evil such as Microsoft, Sony, Yahoo et al.
    (Yes, I know I see the world in black and white)

  • Click-to-call... Hmm... (Score:5, Interesting)

    by pla ( 258480 ) on Thursday May 25, 2006 @12:16PM (#15402452) Journal
    Click-to-call' provides a link inside an advertisement that allows consumers to directly call the advertiser to pursue a transaction."

    As opposed to, say, providing a phone number right in the ad that people could call, which an actual human will then answer?

    Oh, No! I'd much rather give them my phone number and have them call me back, thereby establishing a "relationship" and exempting them from the DNC list.

    Riiiiiight...
    • Oh, No! I'd much rather give them my phone number and have them call me back, thereby establishing a "relationship" and exempting them from the DNC list.

      What the hell are you talking about? Why would you not prefer to click on any ad that comes up through Yahoo, or a listing you've looked up through Yahoo yellow pages, and call a business through skype with no number that be traced or ID'ed back to you and thus provides no means to form a business relationship with your "real" number?

      The situation and use

      • Re:What do you mean? Giving them nothing (Score:4, Informative)

        by pla ( 258480 ) on Thursday May 25, 2006 @12:51PM (#15402785) Journal
        What the hell are you talking about?

        How they actually implement this. As in, I read more than the FP summary and discovered how it really works.

        You click the link. It asks for your phone number. You enter your phone number. Someone calls you. As the basic premise, you don't need to go through a menu system to get to a human (admittedly good), and don't need to pay LD charges for the call (does anyone not have unlimited LD these days?).


        Why would you not prefer to [...] call a business through skype with no number that be traced or ID'ed back to you

        First, consider what percentage of people use VOIP, nevermind Skype specifically (yeah, like EBay would support Vonage for this?). Do you really think they plan to spend a good bit of PR-allocated money to target less than one percent of their market?

        Second, if you consider VOIP even remotely "anonymous", I have a bridge to sell to you.
        • You click the link. It asks for your phone number. You enter your phone number. Someone calls you. As the basic premise, you don't need to go through a menu system to get to a human (admittedly good), and don't need to pay LD charges for the call (does anyone not have unlimited LD these days?).

          What is the source for those details, the article used the phrase "Click to Call" which that would not be (it would be more like "click to be called"). I am not doubting you read it, I just can't see any further refe
          • What is the source for those details

            Your friend and mine, [google.com]


            I just can't see any further references from the story.

            Actually, the linked article didn't say anything more about it, which prompted me to do a search of my own for info.

            I do agree with you that it seems like a very misleading name, though. I too originally expected something like a link that activates your VOIP - which made me really curious of how they did that without bringing "autodialer" malware back with a vengeance. But it appe
            • Here's how: callto:+18884335788 [callto] or callto:echo123 [callto] (For some reason, Skype refuses to auto-dial a SkypeOut number, even if it's free)
            • So it is a callback, but from this [internetnews.com] link:

              "But Google has published a FAQ. According to it, when searchers click on the phone icon, they get a prompt to enter their phone numbers, then click a "Connect For Free" button. Google calls the number provided, then, when the searcher picks up, connects the searcher with the advertiser." ...
              "Google said the advertiser can't see the searcher's phone number, and it promised to delete the number from its servers after a short period of time. However, the phone number is
    • Just a guess, but perhaps Skype has a role in this?
    • You know what would be even better? If, when you clicked on an ad you were interested in, you were taken to the "INTERWEB HTTP SITE" of the advertiser, so you could "pursue a transaction" in the same medium you're currently engaged in, instead of having to switch to talking on the phone.

      I'm surprised no one has tried implementing such a "hot link"-based system yet.
    • Don't people generally buy stuff on the internet so they can avoid having to talk to some salesman on the phone?

      I certainly don't miss the endless "Is that C as in Charlie, or E as in Echo?" bullshit I have to go through every time I have to do some phone transaction with a business that hasn't made it to the 90's yet.

  • Yahoo and eBay have announced a broad partnership in their efforts to compete against Google and Microsoft.

    Does this mean Google and Microsoft will now form a broad partnership to take on their new, consolidated, streamlined enemies?

  • Fees? (Score:4, Interesting)

    by DAldredge ( 2353 ) <SlashdotEmail@GMail.Com> on Thursday May 25, 2006 @12:21PM (#15402508) Journal
    Does this mean that Yahoo! will start raising it's fees every 3 months and making its sites work better if you have an Intel processor?

  • Click to call (Score:2, Insightful)

    by ronanbear ( 924575 )
    Doesn't really seem like too bad an idea to me. There are plenty of times where calling is much faster and more effective than web or email based requests. Since ebay own skype it might be handy to be able to instantly call businesses through skype. You could talk to ebay sellers (If they want to include that option) to sort out product details and shipping etc. quickly. Another option would be yellow pages style ads where a local restaurent would have a facility to call and make a reservation from their we
    • I'd rather they just list tel:// [ietf.org] URLs in messages and webpages where appropriate, but integration is a good thing. I haven't signed up for Skype because, between Yahoo!, MSN, ICQ and my cell phone, there are already too many ways to contact me instantly. Besides, I just use gaim [sourceforge.net] for 90% of my IMing anyway...
  • I know reporters don't have the time or energy to research and just cut-and-paste press releases, but why would they 'write' this article without even *mentioning* yahoo auctions? Is it staying? Going? Yahoo auctions have less restrictions than eBay - For example I can buy cigars on Yahoo, which I can't do on eBay.
  • And in response Google will be teaming up with Amazon.com [wikipedia.org].
  • Yahoo plus eBay vs Google = Zombo [zombo.com].

  • Join the queue (Score:5, Funny)

    by linvir ( 970218 ) * on Thursday May 25, 2006 @12:55PM (#15402826)
    Seriously, just how many companies have joined forces into pairs to defeat Google by now? It's getting old already.

    And Yahoo can keep eBay for all I care. eBay's ads are irrelevant bullshit, and don't fit in with Google's stricter relevancy for other companies. I posted this image [linuxvirus.net] a while back (so if you must mod this up, make it Funny so I don't get karma from the same thing twice) , though it's not exclusively eBay.

    One thing though - I can see it being a loss for Google. I bet that it's a pretty sweet deal they have there, using eBay links as filler when no more relevant ads are available.

  • Honestly, does this really matter for the consumer? The amount of times I have clicked on an advertisement by choice compared to the amount of advertisements I have viewed are about 1 for every 100,000. Then again, I am an experienced computer nerd who isn't the average consumer.
  • Man, I really hate toolbars.
  • I can't believe these companies think I'm going to evidence any sort of loyalty to their brand when it comes to the Internet. When I want to buy one gross of used underpants, I don't care which infomediary points me to the merchant. This is good for eBay I guess, but it looks like a tradeoff for Yahoo. It's great for Google because now when I google for "one gross used underpants" I'll get more results. Soon I'll be able to discriminate between Fruit of the Loom and BVDs. And then... something. And TH
  • A crap search engine that prefaces each result with L@@@@@@@K!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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