Inside Google

Should Silicon Valley Be Worried About a Backlash?

Chris OBrien

Just last week, Consumer Watchdog released a report claiming Google abuses its dominance of search to steer users to its other products. The revelation that the Google Street View team in Europe had “accidentally” collected large amounts of personal user data through Wi-Fi connections certainly hasn’t helped.

A graphic display of what Google knows

John M. Simpson

Every wonder how much information Google has gathered? Scott Cleland, publisher of the Website GoogleMonitor.com, has pulled together a snappy one-page graphic, “Google’s ‘Total Information Awareness’ Power,” that answers the question.

Missouri AG Looks Into Google Wi-Fi Mess

Robert McMillan

Consumer advocate John Simpson said he was happy to see Missouri asking for an explanation. “Google’s … operation compromised consumers’ privacy in the very heartland of America,” said Simpson, an advocate with California’s Consumer Watchdog, in an e-mail message. “The Internet giant needs to be held accountable.”

New Google option: look like Bing home page

Margot Williams

Google is known for the “clean simple look” of its home page at Google.com. Bing has earned praise for the gorgeous photos changing daily on the Bing home page, stocked by Microsoft’s Corbis imagery.

Now Google has announced that you will be able to clutter up your Google.com page with a photo too.

Personalized search: Searching in a Bubble?

Margot Williams

My Google search results are looking too familiar. Looking for something new on the web for a topic of continuing interest, I enter some familiar terms. The same old sites keep turning up. OK, so Google is returning the most relevant results, based on the Google algorithm. Why do they seem so stale?

Consumer Groups Call on FTC to Investigate Latest Google Ad Company Purchase

John M. Simpson

Consumer Watchdog and the Center for Digital Democracy today called on the Federal Trade Commission to investigate Google’s announced plan to buy Invite Media, a display advertising company, for around $70 million, saying the deal raises substantial competitive and privacy concerns.

Critics Call on Feds to Squelch a Google Monopoly

Staff Writers

The concerns set forth by Microsoft, Consumer Watchdog, and other observers go beyond whether Google gives unfair prominence in search rankings to paid advertisers. Critiques range from “A company such a Google could abuse its search dominance” to “Google is already abusing its search dominance” to push its other revenue-generating services — such as maps, video, and shopping searches — at the expense of competitors.

Data Show Google Abuses Search Role, Group Contends

James Temple

Consumer Watchdog continues to push its case that Google Inc. is behaving as an illegal monopoly, releasing a report this morning that alleges the company is abusing is dominance in online search to direct users to its own services.

Watchdog Backs Google Antitrust Complaint with (More) Data

Cade Metz

Public advocate and longtime Google critic Consumer Watchdog has issued a report [1] alleging that the web giant may have used its search monopoly to illegally drive traffic to its own services.

Google Wi-Fi Incident Under More Scrutiny

Juliana Gruenwald

Consumer Watchdog said it obtained three years of Internet traffic from the Web metrics firm Experian Hitwise to analyze Web traffic to Google’s other services. It claims that it shows Google’s search results favor its services over competitors, a claim Google has repeatedly denied.