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Google did well being all over the place as well... Youtube, maps, gmail, android, chrome. If they'd just stuck to search, where would they be now? And for tha

by soperj 11y ago

Google did well being all over the place as well... Youtube, maps, gmail, android, chrome. If they'd just stuck to search, where would they be now? And for that matter, where would we be now?

coldtea 11y ago
Youtube and Maps were acquired, not Google projects. So they got something that worked already, instead of just throwing money to come up with something (which seldom worked for them outside of Search and Mail). Android was Google's (though that was acquired too IIRC, albeit in a much different form), but while a market favorite, it's not a profit source for Google and it's also losing control of it (with Samsung, Amazon etc spinning their own versions). Even for mobile ads, most of Google's revenue comes from iOS devices. >If they'd just stuck to search, where would they be now? Mostly where they are, revenue wise.
- wodenokoto 11y ago
  Depends on how you define a profit source. The main purpose of Android was to get people to look at Google ads on their cellphones. They were very clear about this when they announced Android as free and open source.
  - coldtea 11y ago
    Sure, but even in this case, as I wrote: "Even for mobile ads, most of Google's revenue comes from iOS devices.". To have to write a whole OS, buy Moto for multi-billion dollars, get the most market share of the market even, and then lose money on it and still get your ad money most of your competitor's mobile OS you don't control, is a little failure-ish...
- soperj 11y ago
  YouTube never made a dime before they bought them, was supposedly in a heap of trouble from all the media companies. It's now a profit center. Maps was a offline C++ project when they bought it... I think it's a bit of a stretch to say it was just acquired. I doubt they'd be at the same place actually, since they are better at search now because they know more about you. Their results have improved remarkably since 2005, and I don't think that would be the case if they just stagnated. With Chrome and Youtube, they also are a heavy influencer on web standards, and have done an amazing job at making those more open.

by soperj 11y ago

Google did well being all over the place as well... Youtube, maps, gmail, android, chrome. If they'd just stuck to search, where would they be now? And for that matter, where would we be now?

coldtea 11y ago

Youtube and Maps were acquired, not Google projects. So they got something that worked already, instead of just throwing money to come up with something (which seldom worked for them outside of Search and Mail). Android was Google's (though that was acquired too IIRC, albeit in a much different form), but while a market favorite, it's not a profit source for Google and it's also losing control of it (with Samsung, Amazon etc spinning their own versions). Even for mobile ads, most of Google's revenue comes from iOS devices. >If they'd just stuck to search, where would they be now? Mostly where they are, revenue wise.

wodenokoto 11y ago
Depends on how you define a profit source. The main purpose of Android was to get people to look at Google ads on their cellphones. They were very clear about this when they announced Android as free and open source.
- coldtea 11y ago
  Sure, but even in this case, as I wrote: "Even for mobile ads, most of Google's revenue comes from iOS devices.". To have to write a whole OS, buy Moto for multi-billion dollars, get the most market share of the market even, and then lose money on it and still get your ad money most of your competitor's mobile OS you don't control, is a little failure-ish...
soperj 11y ago
YouTube never made a dime before they bought them, was supposedly in a heap of trouble from all the media companies. It's now a profit center. Maps was a offline C++ project when they bought it... I think it's a bit of a stretch to say it was just acquired. I doubt they'd be at the same place actually, since they are better at search now because they know more about you. Their results have improved remarkably since 2005, and I don't think that would be the case if they just stagnated. With Chrome and Youtube, they also are a heavy influencer on web standards, and have done an amazing job at making those more open.