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How does Google's search monopoly lead them to self-driving cars? This is why I question the Google vs Bell comparison. It seems to me Google wins because they

by ng12 10y ago

How does Google's search monopoly lead them to self-driving cars? This is why I question the Google vs Bell comparison. It seems to me Google wins because they are really, really good at producing technology, not because they have a systematic first-comer advantage.

Retric 10y ago
Monopolies tend to be lest cost conscious. So, Google may be over investing in their self driving team which could cause a less efficient solution to win. Picture the MBA where one team Q spends 100m/year per player to get the best players and more importantly keep them from other teams, but Q has a poor coaching staff. The fact Q keeps wining reduces the drive to replace that poor coaching staff, and other teams may fail to compete so they may give up on the playoffs instead focusing on cheaper players. Not fast forward 20 years and the sport is overall in a worse position with Q lowering standards because nobody else is really competing. For a more relevant example consider the IE 6 stagnation before Firefox.
- ng12 10y ago
  That's just economics at work though. The guy with more money to blow will always have an advantage.
  - Retric 10y ago
    Not so much. The invisible hand of economics just means the less efficient or less desired producers are pushed out of the market. It's just that the guy with more money can often invest it to become more efficient.
    - ng12 10y ago
      Right, money is an advantage and big companies generally have lots of money. The point is Google is not unique in that regard.
      - Retric 10y ago
        They are actually a massive outlier. http://www.siliconbeat.com/2016/05/20/apple-microsoft-google-cisco-oracle-hold-cash-moodys-report/ http://www.siliconbeat.com/2016/05/20/apple-microsoft-google... While Apple has a larger total cash horde ~(216 billion) only 7% of that is in the US or 15B, Google has a larger US cash horde @$73B * 31% = 22.6B making it the largest accessible cash horde in the US. PS: The ~$1.68 trillion in cash held by U.S. companies at the end of 2015 is kind of misleading as financial companies are required to hold cash on hand and thus can't use it for R&D or they are keeping money out of the US while waiting for a Tax holiday under Trump or possibly some other administration.
        ng12 10y ago
        I'm not saying that Google doesn't compete on their cash reserves, I'm saying "so what"? Does having a lot of capital make you a monopoly? Should we penalize business for having cash to spend?
        Retric 10y ago
        Look at it from the other direction. I am saying one of the downsides of monopolies is they end up with a lot of capital, but they don't use it efficiently. At the core investing capital efficiently is a different skill. Another way to look at it is after breaking up AT&T it created a lot of horribly dysfunctional companies. Verizon is a long way from greatness, but many of these guys where far worse and then went out of business because they where inefficient. Remember, it was the same people, tech, and business models before and after the breakup, but busting up AT&T exposed problems to market forces which then went away. I am fine saying the rot has yet to set in at Google. But, give it 20 years and expect the same kind of problems because of human nature. PS: Granted, this does not really answer your so what, but efficiency in the long term really is a boon to society.
marcoperaza 10y ago
>How does Google's search monopoly lead them to self-driving cars? This is why I question the Google vs Bell comparison. It seems to me Google wins because they are really, really good at producing technology, not because they have a systematic first-comer advantage. I don't think you can really call self-driving cars a win for Google at this point. It looks like they might be beat to market by actual car companies, which would be a really devastating outcome for Google.
- zzzzzzzza 10y ago
  No, "waymo" is "way" ahead. I'll see myself out.

by ng12 10y ago

Retric 10y ago

Monopolies tend to be lest cost conscious. So, Google may be over investing in their self driving team which could cause a less efficient solution to win. Picture the MBA where one team Q spends 100m/year per player to get the best players and more importantly keep them from other teams, but Q has a poor coaching staff. The fact Q keeps wining reduces the drive to replace that poor coaching staff, and other teams may fail to compete so they may give up on the playoffs instead focusing on cheaper players. Not fast forward 20 years and the sport is overall in a worse position with Q lowering standards because nobody else is really competing. For a more relevant example consider the IE 6 stagnation before Firefox.

ng12 10y ago
That's just economics at work though. The guy with more money to blow will always have an advantage.
- Retric 10y ago
  Not so much. The invisible hand of economics just means the less efficient or less desired producers are pushed out of the market. It's just that the guy with more money can often invest it to become more efficient.
  - ng12 10y ago
    Right, money is an advantage and big companies generally have lots of money. The point is Google is not unique in that regard.
    - Retric 10y ago
      They are actually a massive outlier. http://www.siliconbeat.com/2016/05/20/apple-microsoft-google-cisco-oracle-hold-cash-moodys-report/ http://www.siliconbeat.com/2016/05/20/apple-microsoft-google... While Apple has a larger total cash horde ~(216 billion) only 7% of that is in the US or 15B, Google has a larger US cash horde @$73B * 31% = 22.6B making it the largest accessible cash horde in the US. PS: The ~$1.68 trillion in cash held by U.S. companies at the end of 2015 is kind of misleading as financial companies are required to hold cash on hand and thus can't use it for R&D or they are keeping money out of the US while waiting for a Tax holiday under Trump or possibly some other administration.
      - ng12 10y ago
        I'm not saying that Google doesn't compete on their cash reserves, I'm saying "so what"? Does having a lot of capital make you a monopoly? Should we penalize business for having cash to spend?
        Retric 10y ago
        Look at it from the other direction. I am saying one of the downsides of monopolies is they end up with a lot of capital, but they don't use it efficiently. At the core investing capital efficiently is a different skill. Another way to look at it is after breaking up AT&T it created a lot of horribly dysfunctional companies. Verizon is a long way from greatness, but many of these guys where far worse and then went out of business because they where inefficient. Remember, it was the same people, tech, and business models before and after the breakup, but busting up AT&T exposed problems to market forces which then went away. I am fine saying the rot has yet to set in at Google. But, give it 20 years and expect the same kind of problems because of human nature. PS: Granted, this does not really answer your so what, but efficiency in the long term really is a boon to society.

marcoperaza 10y ago

>How does Google's search monopoly lead them to self-driving cars? This is why I question the Google vs Bell comparison. It seems to me Google wins because they are really, really good at producing technology, not because they have a systematic first-comer advantage. I don't think you can really call self-driving cars a win for Google at this point. It looks like they might be beat to market by actual car companies, which would be a really devastating outcome for Google.

zzzzzzzza 10y ago
No, "waymo" is "way" ahead. I'll see myself out.