Another Google Tool To Take On PayPal? 219
An anonymous reader writes to mention a ZDNet post about another possible product in the grand Google vision. The product, Google Checkout, may be an attempt to go after PayPal. From the article: "Since we know Google is behind its registration, what is Google Checkout going to be? I think it will be a shopping cart system to help websites accept payment for their items online. The money site owners make will be deposited into a holding account at Google -- just like AdSense works. Isn't this starting to sound a lot like PayPal? Who knows, they could even offer a Google branded Mastercard "debit card" like PayPal's ATM/Debit Card -- after all, the domain googlemastercard.com is registered to Google too."
You midunderstand (Score:5, Funny)
A Whole New Meaning (Score:5, Funny)
Re:A Whole New Meaning (Score:5, Funny)
Re:A Whole New Meaning (Score:4, Funny)
Or, as a guy in college said when a girl walked by, "I wouldn't kick that girl out of bed for eating crackers....would I, 'Crackers'?" (patting his crotch at the appropriate time.
Making such a mistake so early in his college career (first week of school) and earning the nickname of Crackers. When addressed as such, the ladies wanted to know the derivation and he always had to tap dance around it.
As a reasonably small (1'900 students), midwestern, non-denominational Christian university, there were a lot of sensitive ears and everyone knew everyone else. Should he have responded honestly to the wrong person, he might have found his social life a bit empty for some time.
(But it was still fun to watch him deal with the name across a couple of years)
Re:You midunderstand (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:You midunderstand (Score:3, Informative)
Re:You misunderstand (Score:2)
This could only be a good thing (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:This could only be a good thing (Score:5, Interesting)
As a corporation I trust google much more then I trust ebay/paypal or MS or even Visa for that matter.
Re:This could only be a good thing (Score:3, Interesting)
They also have a fantastic track record of stabbing virtually all of the parners in the back, playing loose and fast with the law, acting in an anti-consumer manner, lying, cheating and stealing. Clearly morals, ethics, and general goodness is not a high priority at MS.
"Suddenly Google has knowledge of which ads not only lead to clicks, but lead to p
Re:This could only be a good thing (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:This could only be a good thing (Score:2)
Re:This could only be a good thing (Score:4, Informative)
Think about what they'd have done if you *had* shipped that laptop. Would they have taken responsibility for their mistake? I doubt it. It's easy not to suck if you only look at the best case scenarios.
Re:This could only be a good thing (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:This could only be a good thing (Score:5, Insightful)
Very true. It's also hard not to suck if you only look at the worst cases, as that site listed above clearly does.
Re:This could only be a good thing (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:This could only be a good thing (Score:2)
Re:This could only be a good thing (Score:2)
Re:This could only be a good thing (Score:3, Interesting)
I don't use it often, so when I need to use it to pay for something (a vendor too fucking cheap to get a merchant account, e.g. Abit's RMA department)), Paypal sits on my money for a week before they will actually let me pay the vendor, and when I get refunded, they sit on the damn money again before I can take my money, and they're collecting interest on it all the while. Paypal is the epitome of evil and I do business via paypal only when I have absolutely no alternative. My alternative where Abit
Re:This could only be a good thing (Score:2)
Re:This could only be a good thing (Score:2)
Moneybrookers etc exist but they somehow can't be popular in USA so it means you don't see "moneybookers" icon on all
I mean a real, documented banking service with real support people, not outsourced. (I better not get into details or political correct guys will call me, a turkish g
Re:This could only be a good thing (Score:3, Insightful)
It's in the policy page, he said that he has read and accepted the policies... at that point, it's his problem.
I don't see how this is a bad thing, necessarily.
Re:This could only be a good thing (Score:2)
Re:This could only be a good thing (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:This could only be a good thing (Score:3, Informative)
Re:This could only be a good thing (Score:3, Insightful)
to comply with that using a shipping company they will only ship from a licensed gun dealer to another licensed gun dealer. But you as a owner can drive across state borders legaly (except maybe california, other states don't require out of state hunters to have local permits to carry a unloaded firearm that is in some way secure
Re:This could only be a good thing (Score:2)
When you walk down a steet in a european city some people you pass by may have nipples. When you walk down a street in the US some people may have guns.
Guess which i feel more comfortable with.
Re:This could only be a good thing (Score:2)
Neither have I, but the idea isn't so far fetched. [wndu.com]
You're implying that an unhappy "small minority" (Score:2)
The cool thing about being PayPal (currently under investigation by several State DAs) is that there's no way they can lose. If you're a seller and the buyer says you didn't ship the item, PayPal keeps the money (and the buyer is out product). If you're the buyer and you don't get a product you ordered, Paypa
Re:This could only be a good thing (Score:2)
Look at this guy's journal. He apparently posts posts exactly like the above just to get "loser slashbots" to reply.
If it's the "loser slashbots" who reply to him... what is he?
if this happens... (Score:5, Interesting)
Failing that, what's a decent alternative to Paypal?
Re:if this happens... (Score:2)
Re:if this happens... (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:if this happens... (Score:5, Interesting)
If they acquired PayPal, they would convert it over ot MS servers, just like they did Hotmail.
Re:if this happens... (Score:2)
Would you let a thief house sit for you?
Why cancel my account? (Score:2)
Re:if this happens... (Score:3, Interesting)
Good luck, it took around two weeks and a few emails on a zero-balance year-long inactive account for me to cancel mine. They wouldn't close it on my request, of course, and copy-pasted a set of instructions (that didn't work) in reply to each email. They wouldn't close it themselves, though. They basically ignored that part of my request each time. Admittedly I had lost the password, so it is partly my fault. Glad I'm out though.
This Just In (Score:5, Funny)
Re:This Just In (Score:2)
Re:This Just In (Score:4, Funny)
Re:This Just In (Score:2)
Google Checkout? (Score:3, Funny)
great! (Score:2, Informative)
Re:great! (Score:2)
*sigh* more speculation (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:*sigh* more speculation (Score:5, Interesting)
In any event, this may or may not happen. It may not be anything more than Google noticing online rumors about it possibly starting a PayPal-like service and then deciding to buy the domain either to keep its options open or to prevent phishers or squatters from getting it. Or it could be as the parent described. It certainly would fit in with some aspects of Google Base, but people have made many persuasive arguments for what Google should do and then not see the company do it. After all of the furor over GDrive.com a few months ago, there's still not anything up on that page. Maybe, maybe not. I'll believe it when I see it. Google is second only to Apple when it comes to unsubstatiated/bogus romors.
Re:*sigh* more speculation (Score:2)
Re:*sigh* more speculation (Score:2)
Re:*sigh* more speculation (Score:2)
Just like they use mail.google.com for their mail service? Oh wait, they use gmail.com for that.
Re:*sigh* more speculation (Score:2)
Keeping the dogs out of the internet ... (Score:4, Insightful)
They are not fighting PayPal. They want to charge customers not for delivering clicks but for delivering customers. If the clickers on the ads actually use their checkout service to buy then who cares if the clicker is a dog or a bot. It is a dog who has cash to spend.
Re:Keeping the dogs out of the internet ... (Score:2)
Re:Keeping the dogs out of the internet ... (Score:2)
Re:Keeping the dogs out of the internet ... (Score:3, Interesting)
This could turn out to be very interesting.
This could definately help out with click fraud if they charge by the purchase/customer instead of click,
or have some form of tiered system where purchases/customers are charged a certain amount, and clicks another.
If they get in between the credit card processors/banks and the online stores then we get another benefit.
Google could not actually pass the credit card information to the
Re:Keeping the dogs out of the internet ... (Score:2)
As evreything evolves it comes down to intensions. Does the guy on the corner really want you to believe it is a real Rollex watch or will he tell you its a Rolodex
Who are you? (Score:2, Funny)
Why are you posting anonymously, BadAnalogyGuy?
Re:Keeping the dogs out of the internet ... (Score:2, Informative)
i.e. when you want to checkout, you use a google checkout page.
I am reminded of the yahoo store checkout pages.
Of course some vendors would want their own checkout, and this introduces a new form of fraud
as you stated. Where only Google loses in this case. (Compared to click fraud where both
Google (in reputation and refunds) and the customer loses.)
Somebody call ZDNet... (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Somebody call ZDNet... (Score:3, Funny)
I mean, just imagine it. Google has a site that's based entirely upon wild speculation. Anyone can post any sort of speculation, be it meaningful or not. And the speculation could be searched entirely. If by some chance the speculation came true, then Google news cou
Google acting like... Google. (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Google acting like... Google. (Score:2)
There is no real competition to PayPal (Score:3, Interesting)
There are a lot of PayPal type players out there, with much more evolved services, but they all charge 5-12% on every deal, which is too brutal. If google could match paypal's percentages and offer a nicer service, PayPal would suffer greatly.
A big list of upcoming services (Score:5, Insightful)
Gbrowser.com - I wonder how that's doing.
Googleblows.com - Hm.. so much to speculate on.
Googledoodle.com - A drawing platform, maybe?
Googleporn.com - It's about time!
Here's my favorite: Googlemotherf**ker.com.
Google regularly buys domain names just so others won't. The fact that they bought googlecheckout.net might just mean they don't want someone else masquerading as a Google checkout service.
Re:A big list of upcoming services (Score:2, Funny)
I thought we already had Google Images??
Re:A big list of upcoming services (Score:2)
Re:A big list of upcoming services (Score:2)
Ah, I see they're going to get the Samuel L. Jackson localization done finally.
No Thanks. (Score:5, Interesting)
However, I do not trust them with my money. I had the same experience with Google Adsense that many people have had - account frozen and terminated with no explanation and no possibility for appeal right before my first check was due. I never saw a penny.
Realistically, I'm sure that Checkout will be handled by a different internal group within Google. I don't know if they'll have the same "we'll take your money with no explanation" attitude as the Adsense group. But you can count me right the heck out.
Also, for the record... while PayPal horror stories also abound, I've had no problem with them even after several thousand transactions. I'm quite happy with them. If Google Checkout is a PayPal competitor, I know which side I'm on. Until convinced otherwise.
Re:No Thanks. (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:No Thanks. (Score:5, Interesting)
PayPal does, at least, have some semblence of an appeals process. Although it's said to be quite lacking to say the least, at least it exists. They also tend to give some kind of reason as to what the problem was when payments are canceled and/or accounts are frozen.
Google seems shadier. Now, as you say, this is anecdotal. But Adsense account freezes almost always seem to take place right before the first check is due to be cut. In my case I had AdSense ads up for 2-3 months and generated quite a chunk of change for Google before they conveniently pulled the plug right before cutting me a check. I wound up with nothing. I'm not sure if they detected "suspicious" clicks on my Adsense ads or what, but they nullified all my earnings. Surely the vast majority of those earnings weren't suspicious.
Re:No Thanks. (Score:3, Interesting)
If you were to make a system that detected false clicks in an advertising system, how would you implement it:
1. Run an analysis on EVERY click that comes in, with huge costs associated
2. Have some code that analysed clicks every week, even though money was only sent every month
3. Have som code that analyzed clicks just before you were about to send money
I'm not saying Google are saints(But I'm inclined to believe they are pretty good guys), but option 3 definately looks the most sensible to me
Re:No Thanks. (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:No Thanks. (Score:5, Interesting)
account frozen and terminated with no explanation and no possibility for appeal
And that's worse than what PayPal does to many people... how? PayPal has done much worse, with actual money for sales and services. Real money that is in their account, not just the couple of bucks they supposedly "earned" through advertising.
I know what it is (Score:4, Insightful)
Google maybe setting up a new and improved Froogle with Store Fronts similar to Yahoo Shopping.
"Google Checkout" could be used for stores in froogle to accept payments.
Re:I know what it is (Score:2)
Response to Microsoft's impending eBay buyout? (Score:2, Interesting)
Personally, I wouldn't be surprised to see a new google channel that directly competes with eBay's online marketplace in the near future.
GoogleWiki (Score:2)
Re:GoogleWiki (Score:2, Funny)
Stop speculating. (Score:3, Insightful)
If you were a company with lots of money in the bank, wouldn't you register domain names for 10 bucks a pop that have your name in them, to prevent squatters and to keep your options open? I'm sure google has hundreds of domains, and not all of them will turn out to be new google ideas at all...
Re:Stop speculating. (Score:2)
Re:Stop speculating. (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Stop speculating. (Score:2)
My guess.. (Score:2, Insightful)
Lack of integration with ebay will kill it (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Lack of integration with ebay will kill it (Score:2)
Re:Lack of integration with ebay will kill it (Score:3, Funny)
Yup, no micropayments outside eBay, no other countries than USA, no other language than English.
Re:Lack of integration with ebay will kill it (Score:2, Funny)
And that's why Google will unveil gbay [gbay.com] next!
Re:Lack of integration with ebay will kill it (Score:2, Informative)
Replace both... (Score:3, Informative)
Ebay's become a cesspool anyhow, with severely overrated shipping costs ($50 shipping with a $1 item still shows the item as $1 in the listings), people selling "how buy get a cheap X" crap, and much more. The days of low-bid bargains seem to have gone past, and the present reality is that you have to do a lot of searching just to find the real item.
here we go again ...... (Score:2)
Odd Coinicidence? I think not! (Score:2)
You knew it was coming.. (Score:2, Funny)
Re: (Score:2)
Re:Google's tool chain groweth (Score:2)
Or for home/basic users a simple os which provides access to a basic but fully functional gui which then uses web based apps to provide anything more complex than a basic browser... have some offline syncing software and readers (I tend to
Re:Google's tool chain groweth (Score:2)
They might be forced to, though. What are Google going to do when Microsoft starts trying to compete with them by making Windows use MSN search as the default search engine and making it difficult to change the default to Google?
Microsoft want to compete with Google and Google's response of developing software for Windows only and pl
isn't there something like this besides PayPal (Score:3, Insightful)
http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/merchant/ [yahoo.com]
probably maybe less fees.
Actually... (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Suicide... (Score:3, Funny)
See the Fish! [youtube.com]
I liked Google better... (Score:2)
Comment removed (Score:5, Insightful)