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Google empire slowing down

Barbarians at the gates
Friday, 17 July 2009, 12:06

IT SEEMS that the glorious Google empire, upon which the jelly never sets, is starting to slow down.

According to Bloomburg, sales at the outfit have slowed in the second quarter, indicating that the technology industry's recovery might be a bit slower than Google's investors hoped.

True it managed a 2.9 per cent sales gain, but that is a lot slower than the 6.2 per cent growth of the quarter before.

Google ads fetched lower prices and its shares dropped as much as 3.5 per cent in late trading. It seems that businesses are curbing spending on Internet ads as they cope with the economic slump. Since this is Google's main source of revenue the outfit is not a happy bunny.

Tarot readers who work for analyst companies are expecting a 10 per cent growth in online advertising. Last year there was a 22 per cent growth.

Things might get worse too. Google chief executive Eric Schmidt has been telling the world plus dog that it was too early to say when the recovery will materialise.

Clicks on Google ads fell by 2 per cent last quarter from the previous three months, the company said. Revenue was $4.07 billion, compared with an average estimate of $4.06 billion.

Operating cash flow dropped to its lowest level in two years and the outfit had a tax bill the size of Texas to pay.

While Google has been making more cuts than Sweeney Todd, it seems that the outfit is starting to lose its way a bit financially. Unlike many in the tech industry, it depends on people feeling good enough about themselves to buy adverts. At the moment no one feels particularly good. µ

 

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Comments
Statistics are great

So, how are the rest of the online advertising providers doing? If Google is doing poorly, but still growing faster than everyone else than they are doing well. We need some context otherwise these numbers are meaningless!

"90% of statistics are made up on the spot."

posted by : nafhan, 17 July 2009 Complain about this comment
Perhaps the clicks are going to others

Perhaps there are more of us than they want to admit who are using other searcges such as Bing. I am one who always used Google but I am now using Bing after trying it for a few weeks.
In order for this article to be relivent we need comparisons with the other leading providers for the same time frame.

posted by : Dan in CA, 17 July 2009 Complain about this comment
Cor Bless You, Mr. Rosewater!

The devil is in the entrails.

posted by : Kilgore Trout, 17 July 2009 Complain about this comment
Google isn't slowing down

I laughed as I read this. The entire world has went BACKWARDS, not slowed down. At the same time, google has INCREASED both it's TOP and BOTTOM lines. We are in a recession or DEPRESSION, depending on who you ask yet google is ADDING PROFITS. This should show how strong this company is. Your reporting should have highlighted this. The title of your article (is it an article still when it's BS?) is a twist of facts at best. How much money are their competitors making? Even before the collapse of our economy? I'd call this kicking some serious A$$. If you can make money when a good portion of the world is losing their A$$ you have a VERY good business. Google will be $700 by next xmas. You heard it here :) No, I own other stocks (not enough money to buy all I want right now...LOL). Too many places I think you can make more, quicker. But if I was looking for no risk, good return in 1.5yrs, I'd be buying google (maybe before xmas my other stuff will pop and I'll move to google etc). Great stock in the long run. Bing won't help MS until they stop selling out slots in my searches. Google is still my homepage and haven't used bing since the first try showed it's still MS and not a great search engine. Pretty, Fancy....But still sold out.

posted by : The JIAN, 18 July 2009 Complain about this comment
Google fanbois

Wow, google fansbois are even more rabid than Apple fanbois.

They also can't spell for s**t, lol.

posted by : Kobayashi from The Usual Suspects, 18 July 2009 Complain about this comment
Good one

"Tarot readers"

Hah ! Had a chuckle out of that.

posted by : Pascal Monett, 18 July 2009 Complain about this comment
Google buy buy

There stock should be a solid performer. Considering two of the Google founders are advisers to the Obama administration. They are in there with NASA, the NSA and a lot of other government mafia run organizations. Infact it is there goal to control you and the world, to put it all into 1's and 0's. They dream of the day when you shall be fitted with an embeded biometric ID and then they wish to hook up your brain! :D The US government loves the idea and so should your investment portfolio in these uncertain times. It's a solid investment because it is needed and it profits because of the government mostly, NOT advertising..
I wonder what MS is doing ummmm

Funny thing it is all true, you just have to dig deep enough.

posted by : Minotaur, 20 July 2009 Complain about this comment
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