So, Microsoft is trying to get News Corp to de-index from the Google search engine and presumably stick to Microsoft Bing. I think this is a bit unethical because the intent isn’t to provide a superior service and thus attract consumers of either end; it is all about throwing money at the solution and creating a loss scenario which will lead to the demise of a competitor and a healthy amount of Microsoft stockholder value if it doesn’t work out.
I call this the search engine version of dumping because in dumping, the idea is to flood a market with product at a price point that forces a competitor to operate at a loss so great that it simply comes down to a matter of budget, and how much is in the coffers of the companies. It won’t work with Google; but it will force consumers to switch to a service they may not be interested in and obviously weren’t because they were using Google until the deal went through.
I’m speaking of this as if it has occurred because if the deal goes through, this is the most likely outcome. People want the information, and aren’t so interested in the provider as long as it is quick and readable.
To me, the tactic of paying someone to index their site is a highly provocative tactic; it simply isn’t done unless the provider is closed to begin with. Sites like Lexis-Nexis might allow a site to provide search engine solutions, but only internally, and LN would pay someone like Google to offer that additional benefit. News sites look to attract consumers of the data and the advertisements. Pulling themselves from the largest provider of directed traffic based on consumer context [a person searching Google puts in key words while Google indexes the sites and based on relevance, pushes a consumer to the highest ranked site] which leads to people providing the best data. Google provides a forum for competition while Microsoft is seeking to eliminate that competition by paying News Corp to de-list.
What I think will happen though is not what Microsoft thinks will happen. Consumers will not pay for search, it simply won’t happen. The moment this happens; a new provider will pop up and will offer it for free. Google has the best of both worlds, as a provider and consumer of the service you pay yourself. So, stay listed because when people come to your site and click on Google branded advertisements; you get money back.
You pay yourself. Albeit at a lower rate, but like Government employees; upwards of 30% of each pay check is taxes; which goes back into the next check… they pay themselves by way of taxes on their paycheck, which is originally paid by taxes.
This attempt to pay people to de-index from Google is simply an attempt to harm a competitor, and to me, it is because the service that Microsoft offers is inferior and can’t compete based on service. It also can’t compensate news providers like News Corp with consumers to their sites, and it is apparently not attractive enough to simply provide the service on its overall merit.
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