Sorry my previous comment has been cut-off, phone issues. Yes Google extracts a lot of value, but it does offer a lot too(and let's not forget the moonshots).

Sorry my previous comment has been cut-off, phone issues. Yes Google extracts a lot of value, but it does offer a lot too(and let's not forget the moonshots). And btw, the reason your friends pay a lot is partly because there's a lot of competition on their keywords. Is that Google's blame ? And that's the reason why uber drivers make less - competition. BTW isn't it often the trade-off ? choose small, local businesses - and get far less innovation and value - or large business and get more innovation(because they have the capital, plus other structural benefits) and value, but lose lots of control and get more value captured ? I think the best we can have is competition between the large and the small. So you have Amazon and Ebay's merchants ,each restraining each other. Maybe we need more stuff like that ,competition between the centralized and the distributed.