Google Portal
History/Background
Google began as a research project at Stanford Univeristy by two Ph.D student, Larry
Page and Sergey Brin. By developing a new querying algorithm, Google’s search engine
analyzed the relationship between webpages rather than the pages getting the most hits
which was the technique used their competitors. After continuous testing, the “Google
guys” were convinced their engine was the best and would find the most relevant pages
associated with what the search field contained. They began to recruit new investors and
on September 7, 1998 the company was incorporated under the name Google Inc.
(History of Google).
From the beginning Google attracted loyal users to their site with their clean design to
their pages and delivering top results to their customers. Their products and services
have evolved from then and a list can be found below:
Culture
From Google.com, their Mission Statement is: “Organize the world’s information and
make it universally accessible and useful.” Today, Google is recognized as the worlds
largest search engine being an easy-to-use free service that returns relevant results
quickly to its customers. To solve for their customers, Google takes special care of their
employees to keep them happy. From free meal’s at “Charlie’s Place” to the
complementary Starbucks and Jamba Juice that Google provides to its employees, it is a
place people want to be. Google has created a work environment that is so enjoyable that
they don’t want to leave, the employees want to stay and get their newest, cutting-edge
project done fast so they can work on the next technological breakthrough. As for
recruiting, Google hires the best and the brightest, as well as develops who can contribute
to the next exciting Google feature. The office talk includes gaming secrets, encryption,
or new Google projects, it isn’t rare to hear an employee say, “That’s a product I helped
develop before I came to Google.” (Google Spawn: The Culture Surrounding Google)
being innovated and with the financial backing of Google, programmers and engineers
can have their ideas supported financially and create the next breakthrough for the
company.
Once Google went public, the stock took off and their empire on the internet grew
tremendously. Google April 19, 2004 was when the first shares were sold publicly and it
closed its first day at $100 per share. Today their shares are trading for over $450 on a
daily basis and are a strong investment even at that price. They declared their code of
conduct as, “Don’t Be Evil” and is one of the reasons they have survived so well as a tech
stock. They claim to “believe in the long term, we will be better served – as shareholders
and in all other ways – by a company that does good things for the world even if we
forgo some short term gains.” Google has lived by this statement and played the game
fair, even if they aren’t the best at sometime they will end up investing in that
company. For example, YouTube.com was a far superior site than and GoogleVideo so
they purchased the rights to that site for over $1,000,000. With market domination and
saturation at this point, Google is taking over. The name it self has actually become a
verb with “Google it” becoming a daily phrase for people. Today, to stay competitive,
Google’s engineers are teaming up with the top software products to make some new and
innovative applications. For example, Google is teaming up with Intuit, makes of
Quicken and TurboTax, and WebMD to create software that will revolutionize the way
patients, doctors, and vendors manage all of their medical information. With that attitude
and mentality, Google will remain on top and their products even though web-based are
challenging software companies for their customers (The Google Culture).
Copyright Issues
During the last couple of years, Google has had its issues with their algorithms and other
copyright issues with their product. Organizations have used the Digital Millennium
Copyright Act to order that they remove references to copyrighted material on other
sites. To handle these claims, Google typically removes the link to the site requested and
the link to the site that has the issue. Other problems for Google include their Web cache
feature has received complaints that it violates copyright. To battle this, Google
implemented a feather that allows caching to be disabled. Another issue that Google is
working on with universities it to digitize millions of copyrighted material housed at their
respective universities. This could be considered a violation under copyright laws
because Google places profit making ads next to the search results for these
materials. Google however has an agreement with the universities to only provide
excerpts of copyright text in a search and in the contract says that it will comply with all
“fair use”, which is an exemption with copyright law that grants people the right to
reproduce portions of the copyrighted text for research purposes. In the past year or so,
Google has been hit with numerous law suits claiming that their search techniques find
someone else’s copyrighted material and the owner is not getting credit for it. For
example, Agene France-Presse (AFP) sued Google for nearly $18 million back in March
2005 claiming they used AFP photos and stories online without permission from
them. Also back in 2005, they were suit by the authors who’s work was scanned in for
the Google digitization project that was mention before. Google is trying to gather and
organize everyone’s information and work in one central location but may be crossing the
line in some circumstances.
Privacy
Perhaps the most serious legal issue Google is dealing with is their privacy issue. With
Google being the largest search engine, what kind of data are they gathering from their
users. The problem that Google infringes on is that the cookies that are used to track
Web users’ search history are unique identifying the user. The cookies contain
information such as the date, the uses preferences between sessions and include distant
expiration dates to continue gathering data even if the user never uses a Google site
again. Gmail, a POP3 account that Google provides to those who sign up gather the
signee’s information and they have to agree to some terms of the account. However,
Google is also scanning information from an incoming message if it isn’t from a Gmail
account which obviously no one agreed to any terms that would include this type of
scrutinyzation.
What does Google really know? If you have a…
Everything you
search using
Google.com
All pages that you
visit that have
Adsense ads on
them
Every Blogger page
you visit
Adsense Account:
Full name, address,
bank account details
IP address of
everyone who visits
sites with Adsense
ads on them
Number of visitors
on those Adsense ad
sites
Gmail Account:
Content and
addresses sent to
your account
Everything you send
or receive in a
Gmail account
Additionally…
Your online social
net, interests, and
groups
What you purchase
from Froogle
Use Google.com
Posts through
Blogger
How can Google get away with this?
Google states they don’t share the information gathered to third parties. Also they say
they retain and use the information with “good faith belief, access, preserve, or disclose
any information deemed reasonably necessary” to protect Google’s image.
More specifically, from Google’s website, this is why they claim to gather their users
personal information:
"
Information we collect and how we use it:
We offer a number of services that do not r equire you to register for an account or
provide any personal information to us, such as Google Search. In order to provide our
full range of services, we may collect the following types of information:

Information you provide - When you sign up for a Google Account or other
Google service or promotion that requires registration, we ask you for personal
information (such as your name, email address and an account password). For
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certain services, such as our advertising programs, we also request credit card or
other payment account information which we maintain in encrypted form on
secure servers. We may combine the information you submit under your account
with information from other Google services or third parties in order to provide
you with a better experience and to improve the quality of our services. For
certain services, we may give you the opportunity to opt out of combining such
information.
Google cookies - When you visit Google, we send one or more cookies - a small
file containing a string of characters - to your computer that uniquely identifies
your browser. We use cookies to improve the quality of our service by storing
user preferences and tracking user trends, such as how people search. Most
browsers are initially set up to accept cookies, but you can reset your browser to
refuse all cookies or to indicate when a cookie is being sent. However, some
Google features and services may not function properly if your cookies are
disabled.
Log information - When you use Google services, our servers automatically
record information that your browser sends whenever you visit a website. These
server logs may include information such as your web request, Internet Protocol
address, browser type, browser language, the date and time of your request and
one or more cookies that may uniquely identify your browser.
User communications - When you send email or other communication to Google,
we may retain those communications in order to process your inquiries, respond
to your requests and improve our services.
Affiliated sites - We offer some of our services in connection with other web sites.
Personal information that you provide to those sites may be sent to Google in
order to deliver the service. We process such information in accordance with this
Policy. The affiliated sites may have different privacy practices and we encourage
you to read their privacy policies.
Links - Google may present links in a format that enables us to keep track of
whether these links have been followed. We use this information to improve the
quality of our search technology, customized content and advertising. For more
information about links and redirected URLs, please see our FAQs.
Other sites - This Privacy Policy applies to web sites and services that are owned
and operated by Google. We do not exercise control over the sites displayed as
search results or links from within our various services. These other sites may
place their own cookies or other files on your computer, collect data or solicit
personal information from you.
Google only processes personal information for the purposes described in the applicable
Privacy Policy and/or privacy notice for specific services. In addition to the above, such
purposes include:
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Providing our products and services to users, including the display of customized
content and advertising;
Auditing, research and analysis in order to maintain, protect and improve our
services;
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Ensuring the technical functioning of our network; and
Developing new services
"
This material was straight from Google's privacy policy , which is the corporate
information Google has hidden on their corporate site.
How has the public reacted?
Main criticisms to Google’s techniques include the fact that the expiration date set for
their cookies is January 17, 2038 at 2:14:05 PM. Also, there is no way a user can delete
their information once it is stored in a Google database. You can delete a cookie, but as
soon as you visit another google site, a new cookie will be created. Plus, there is no
expiration/deletion policy that Google has established to erase a users
information. Finally, Google’s ads are extremely well targeted to the user and they will
not disclose what information they use to get these ads to their
customers. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_and_privacy_issues)
Terms of Service
When using the Google.com search engine or any google services the user is bound by
the following terms and conditions:
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Content linked to by Google - Google has no control over what links return from
the search. They have no previously looked at the site and can’t guarantee a
match and is not accountable for what is returned. They warn that some links
may contain objectionable, inappropriate or offensive content which they cannot
filter our of the results.
Personal Use Only – Google Services are made for personal, non-commerical
use only. You can’t use the Google system to sell any type of product or service,
also you can’t use Google services to increase traffic on your webside for
commercial reason, i.e. advertising sales. To use google for commercial purposes,
you must file an agreement with Google in advance to gain permission.
No Automated Querying – As a user, you cannot send automated querries
through Google’s system. Basically they don’t want the user to use software to
change how a specific page “ranks” on Google.com. Also, you cant “metasearch” on Google.com or perform offline queries.
Changes in Terms and Conditions – Google reserves the right to modify these
terms at any time as well as deny certain users or anyone from a third party access
to the Google products and services.
Intellectual Property Policy – It is in Google’s policy to respond to claims of
infringement that comply with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.
Disclaimer of Warranties – Users obtain information from the google service at
their discretion. Google is not responsible for what you find or download from
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their site. If you download a virus it is you fault, Google has nothing to do with
it. More specifically “Google disclaims any and all responsibility or liability for
the accuracy, content, completeness, legality, reliability, or operability or
availability of information or material displayed in the GOOGLE SERVICES
results. Google disclaims any responsibility for the deletion, failure to store,
misdelivery, or untimely delivery of any information or material. Google
disclaims any responsibility for any harm resulting from downloading or
accessing any information or material on the Internet through the GOOGLE
SERVICES.”
Limitation of Liability – Google or its licensors are not to be held liable for a
delay or failure in performance of your computer, system, internet, etc. In their
terms, “Without limiting the foregoing, under no circumstances shall Google or
its licensors be held liable for any delay or failure in performance resulting
directly or indirectly from acts of nature, forces, or causes beyond its reasonable
control, including, without limitation, Internet failures, computer equipment
failures, telecommunication equipment failures, other equipment failures,
electrical power failures, strikes, labor disputes, riots, insurrections, civil
disturbances, shortages of labor or materials, fires, floods, storms, explosions, acts
of God, war, governmental actions, orders of domestic or foreign courts or
tribunals, non-performance of third parties, or loss of or fluctuations in heat, light,
or air conditioning.” This basically covers anything that can or could go wrong
with your computer while using a Google service.
Requests for Removal of Links of Cached Materials – Google addresses each
request to remove links from their database. This is on a case-by-case basis o
remove the link to the site from its search results but Google does not guarantee
that each request will be granted. Google cache’s all web pages as a back-up
incase a server fails and that page cannot be found. As a site owner, you can use
the “NOARCHIVE meta-tag” that will prevent Google from retrieving cached
versions of their website.
Features of Google
Since the start of Google, they have been ahead of the game and pride themselves on
being the best. Google can basically do a version of any type of software out there right
now. Google is in the progress of developing an operating system, they already have a
calendar management site, email setup, Froogle – Google marketplace, and Google video
just to name a few. Please see below for a list of Google services available according to
wikipedia.com.
Please see Appendix 1 for a complete list of Google's products and services.
Public Privacy Policy History/
Background – EULAs
Privacy History
Google’s privacy policy, like common law formed from many different disputes, acts,
and lawsuits in the past. Authors guild lawsuit, censorship, Digital Millennium Copyright
Act (DMCA), Gonzalez v. Google, all having their effect on Googles history dealing with
copyrights, trade secrets, and information in the public domain are among the many
examples of the disputes that formed Googles privacy policy and the creation of their
End-User License Agreements (EULA)
Authors Guild Lawsuit 2005 (click here)
The Authors Guild and a Lincoln biographer, a children's book author, and a former Poet
Laureate of the United States filed a class action suit in federal court in Manhattan
against Google over its unauthorized scanning and copying of books through its Google
Library program. The suit alleges that the $90 billion search engine and advertising
juggernaut is engaging in massive copyright infringement at the expense of the rights of
individual writers.
Through its Library program, Google is reproducing works still under the protection of
copyright as well as public domain works. Google intends to make money from the
project by selling advertising on its search pages, much as it does on its popular online
search-engine site. Each of the plaintiffs claim copyright to at least one literary work that
is in the library of the University of Michigan, according to the suit. Michigan is one of
three universities, along with Harvard and Stanford, that agreed last year to let Google
create searchable databases of their entire collections. The New York Public Library and
Oxford University also entered into agreements with Google, but only for the works in
their collections that are no longer covered by copyright.
The suit contends that Google knew or should have known that the Copyright Act
"required it to obtain authorization from the holders of the copyrights in these literary
works before creating and reproducing digital copies of the works for its commercial use
and for the use of others." Google has said from the beginning that its program is covered
by the "fair use" provision of the copyright law, which allows limited use of protected
works. There are four factors of fair use; the purpose and character of the use, Nature of
the copyrighted work, amount and substantiality of the portion used, and effect of use on
potential market. In a statement issued in response to the suit, Google also said its
program respected copyrights.
Censorship (click here)
According to ABC news, google stated that providing some information is better than
providing no information. The company agreed to block some sites that cover human
rights, Tibet and other topics that Beijing doesn’t want the citizens of the communist
nation to research. “ The controversy over Google's decision underscores the ongoing
tensions between Internet tools that increase computer users' access to information and
the efforts of totalitarian and repressive regimes around the world to limit that access".
Google removed Agence France Presse (AFP) from Google news in a direct reaction to a
lawsuit AFP filed against the search engine provider alleging copyright infringe over the
inclusion of AFP content in Google news. More recently, Belgian newspapers won a case
against Google for copyright infringement for republishing snippets of their newspapers
content on Google News without permission.
Though search engines cannot prevent direct access to a site of interest, an exclusion
from a search engine may nonetheless have a similar effect on a site's ability to reach its
intended visitors. Private parties have sought to have search results omitted whose
corresponding sites allegedly infringe copyright or other rights. For example, the Church
of Scientology, invoking the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S. Digital Millennium
Copyright Act, convinced Google to remove references to certain web pages critical of
the religion and allegedly containing copyrighted material; another example may be
found with the Internet Archive's policy of possibly (but not necessarily) acceding to
requests to remove its caches of a given Web site should the site's authors (or perhaps
others) object on the basis of copyright infringement.
Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA)
Google states that their policy is to respond to clear notices of alleged copyright
infringement, whether Google is liable for such infringement under local country law or
United States law. Their response include removing or disabling access to material
claimed to be the subject of infringing activity and/or terminating subscribers
(http://books.google.com/picasa_web_dmca.html).
The DMCA applies to a variety of digital works, including sound recordings, A/V works,
software, and literary works. DMCA major provisions that deal with Google’s issues
include anticircumvention rules and exceptions and copyright management information.
The DMCA anticircumvention rules prohibit unauthorized access to a work protected by
standard technical protection measures intended to restrict access.
Gonzalez v. Google
The U.S. Department of Justice filed a motion in federal court seeking a court order that
would compel search engine company Google, Inc. to turn over “a multi-stage random
sample of one million URL’s” from Google’s database, and a computer file with “the text
of each search string entered onto Google’s search engine over a one-week period
(Gonzalez v. Google). Google objects thats its compliance with the request would require
it to produce information identifying the users of its search engines. The Government has
issued subpoenas to, and has produced electronic files to the Government that contain the
texts of the search strings, but that do not contain any additional personal identifying
information. Thus Google should have no problem complying in the same way
competitors have. Google also contends that the material asked for in this request is
redundant since the Government has already subpoenaed other search engines for similar
information. Google then argues that the subpoena forces them to produce trade secrets
by giving up the total number of queries it receives with a given day. Also Google
contends that it will be subject to an undue burden in complying with this request and that
its compliance with this request would imply that its search engine database is reflective
of the entire world-wide-web.
The Government denies any of these allegations stating, that they are unaware of anyway
these queries could give up trade secrets and if it did it would be under protective orders
that protects such privileged material from disclosure. The burden that Google would be
put under would be minimal, the Government request seeks only the production of the
queries that were entered into Google’s search engine over a week period in a electronic
text file.
End user License Agreements (EULA)
EULA are meant to protect the producer of the software by presenting the user a choice
of accepting or rejecting the agreement. Companies can use EULAs more as an elaborate
liability disclaimer than a real contract. EULA’s work on the same principle as
shrinkwrap, but instead of breaking the plastic wrapping used to coat the box a user clicks
to agree or reject agreement.
Google Earth EULA
Google Earth is a free downloadable virtual globe program. It can map the earth by super
imposing images obtained from satellite imagery, aerial photography and Geographic
Information Systems (GIS) over a 3 dimensional globe. There is no registration required.
The program seems to be for use by anyone anytime but their EULA states that the
Software is made available for your personal, non-commercial use only. You may not use
the Software or the geographical information made available for display using the
Software, or any prints or screen outputs generated with the Software in any commercial
or business environment or for any commercial or business purposes for yourself or any
third parties. Which means the use of the free version of Google Earth is forbidden at
work.
Google Desktop
Google Desktop is a free downloadable software that allows users access to information
on their computer and from the web. It allows full text searches over email, files, music,
photos, chats, Gmail, and web pages that were viewed. Google Desktop EULA is not
displayed like Google Earth through the installation of the software. According to
Googles Term and Conditions a user agrees to the EULA by the just downloading the
software. The user acknowledges that Google or third parties own all right title and
interest in and to Google Desktop, portions, thereof, or software or content provided
through or in conjunction with Google Desktop, including without limitation all
Intellectual Property Rights.
Updates for Google Desktop EULA
Google Desktop may communicate with Google's servers (unless Google Desktop is
being used in an internal business and settings prevent this communication) to check for
available updates to the software, such as bug fixes, patches, enhanced functions, missing
plug-ins and new versions. During this process, Google Desktop sends Google a request
for the latest version information. By installing Google Desktop the user agrees to
automatically request and receive Updates from Google's servers.
Google Toolbar
Google Toolbar is an Internet browser toolbar available for Microsoft Internet Explorer
and Mozilla Firefox. The way a user agrees to Googles Toolbar EULA is agreeing when
downloading and installing. Googles Toolbar installs directly to a internet browser and
the size of the software is relativity small, so the action of downloading and installing is
at the same time.
Gmail EULA
Gmail is a free POP3 email service provided by Google. Since Gmail service that
requires registration their EULA is “signed” when user is finishing registration. Gmail's
EULA states that the user agrees to Google Terms of Service, Gmail Privacy Policy, and
Gmail Program Policies. They spell out the description, use, intellectual property rights,
Privacy and use of advertisements.
Privacy Issues specific to Google
Google maintains a very detailed privacy policy, notifying users of all of the terms of
their service. The policy details what information is gathered, how the information is
gathered, what is done with the information, how it is protected, and much more. It is
important for Google to clearly state, and make available, such information to protect
them from legal action. In general, Google appears to be a trustable corporation, however
there is a lot that goes on behind the scenes that users do not know about. Despite many
lawsuits against Google, they seem to maintain a rather secure use of their Personal
Identifyable Information.
Personal Identifyable Information
There are many issues to consider regarding privacy, with regards to Google, but first it is
important to understand the general concept of privacy and personal identifiable
information (PII). Privacy regulations are based on the balance between the individual’s
desire to keep certain things secret or hidden from society, and society’s natural desire for
information. With the internet, a whole new set of privacy issues become important and
laws must adapt to the ever-changing environment of the information era.
Data Management
In order to understand the legal issues involved with privacy, it is important to understand
the process by which data is managed via the internet. The process starts whenever some
sort of activity is prompted by the user, for example entering a website. At this point in
time the user is identifiable by some unique factor, such as an IP number, or a username
(both methods are used by Google). After the user is identifiable, data is collected by
observing the activity, for example links clicked on, searches entered, text in emails,
etc. The data then must be stored and analyzed. Google has one of the largest storage
capacities on the internet, and a very advanced system for analyzing data; they have even
promised Artificial Intelligence in the future. After being analyzed, data is either directly
used, or sold to a third party. Google claims not to sell their PII to third parties; however
they reserve the right to share aggregated, non personal information with third parties.
They also recieve such information from third parties, according to their privacy policy.
Privacy in the Constitution
The process of data management is very controversial with regards to privacy
issues. While privacy is not directly mentioned in the U.S. Constitutions, many of the
amendments have an effect on privacy regulations. The table below lists the
constitutional provisions that have an impact on privacy, and explains their importance
related to Google.
Constitutional Provision Rights Protected
First Amendment
Freedoms of speech,
religion, press,
assembly, petitions
Impact on Privacy relevant to Google
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Protects privacy of ideas and expression of ide
worship practices, group memberships, etc. K
government from checking group membership
Google, etc.
Permits observation and learning, allowing Go
online activity.
Third Amendment
No quartering of
soldiers
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Provides protection from military’s physical in
surveillance into the home, which for Google m
protection from the government’s observation
Fourth Amendment
No unlawful search and
seizure; warrants,
subpoenas, or court
orders are required
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Protects from unreasonable search of persons,
or effect without warrant based on probable ca
Google, this means that the government should
search through internet records without a warr
Secrecy of communications and correspondenc
observation of emails and chats on Google as w
of the internet.
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No double jeopardy; no
self-incrimination; due
process (federal); no
uncompensated taking
of private property
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Trials in the public
record, confront
witnesses
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Ninth Amendment
Enumeration of rights in
Constitution does not
deny the people other
rights
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Basis to infer privacy rights, even though not e
in Constitution.
Tenth Amendment
Reserves power of
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Basis to infer state authority to enact privacy la
Fifth Amendment
Sixth Amendment
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Protects from repeated legal process, forced re
information, and enhances autonomy. For Goo
protects their right to refuse information from
government, protecting the users.
Protects from federal action taking ownership
and knowledge acquired about others’ private
protects admission of observation of PII on Go
by third parties.
Prevents secrecy of trials, so users know when
on trial.
Permits intrusion into witnesses’ solitude to re
testimony, and cross-examination opens up wi
and conduct to scrutiny.
government to the states
or to the people
Fourteenth Amendment
Due process (states);
privileges and
immunities; equal
protection of laws
people to protect their privacy.
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Basis to withhold or limit access to informatio
personal choice. Allows Google to hold inform
government.
Protects from state action taking ownership of
and knowledge acquired about others’ private
activities. Much like the Fifth, this protects Go
admitting to observation.
Bagby, John. E-Commerce Law: Issues for Business. New York: South-Western
College/West, 2003. 597.
Fair Information Practice Principles
To protect users, there are certain principles which establish fair management of
information. First, users must agree to the collection of information. Notifications are
either opt-in, where a users must go through extra steps to allow information to be shared,
or opt-out, where users must go through extra steps to prohibit the information collection.
Opt-out systems usually gather more information, because most users don’t opt-out, and
few users would choose to opt-in if that were the case. Google requires consent from
users to share information, utilizing an opt-in system: "We have your consent. We require
opt-in consent for the sharing of any sensitive personal information." In both cases, users
must be notified of the collection of their information, and then they have to be given a
choice whether or not to permit collection. If they grant consent, the PII can be used, but
users should be granted access to their information if they request it. Beyond the
principles regulating the collection of the information, companies also have a duty to
protect the PII to assure that it does not end up in the wrong places. Certain security
measures should be taken to assure that the data is not intercepted. Enforcement of
privacy practices is also a necessity based on the Fair Information Practice Principles
(FIPP).
Profiling
Many of the advertisements that we see on the internet are not displayed on
accident. Data is gathered by many methods throughout the internet, whether by simply
asking questions, or collecting a wide range of information about users to display the
most relevant advertisements to each user. Some profiling systems simply ask for age,
gender, etc. allowing them to personalize advertisements to their users. For example, a
users that stated he was a male, would likely not be displayed a banner for feminine
products. Google has a very complicated method of gathering information about their
users, to provide them with relevant advertisements. First, if a user signs up for an
account with Google, certain information is gathered (gender, age, location, etc.) Users
can choose to keep some information from Google, however certain fields are
required. After gathering the initial information on users, information continues to be
gathered by Google's strategic information systems. They log information such as
Internet Protocol address, browser type, browser language, and date and time of
requests. This information is gathered for users, as well as casual visitors to the
site. Google logs all searches made under a user name, or a specific IP address. They
also log direct communications that users make with Google, such as complaints or
comments sent to Google support. Google also gathers information from some partner
sites. Google is affiliated with certain sites which send them their user information,
which is gathered according to their own privacy policies. Google also records
information about what links users click on. Google gathers information using several of
their services, including: Google Calendar, Google Desktop, Gmail, Google Groups,
Orkut, Google Personalized Homepage, Personalized Searches, Google Store, Google
Talk, Google Toolbar for IE, Google Toolbar for Firefox, Google Video Player, Google
Web Accelerator. Detailed privacy policies are available for each of these services, as
well as an overall privacy policy for Google, available on its site.
Children’s On-line Protection Act
The Children’s On-line Protection Act (COPA) of 1998 protects minors from material
that could be harmful to them. Whether or not the material is harmful to minors is either
obscene, or meets three standards. The first standard regards to whether or not the
average person believes the information appeals to the prurient interest. The second
standard assures that the information does not contain sexual conduct or inappropriate
nudity. Finally, the act takes into account whether or not the material lacks literary,
artistic, political, or scientific value for minors. The COPA further details each of these
circumstances. It is important for Google to not knowingly make communication with
minors for commercial purposes revealing any information that is harmful to
minors. This is one of the reasons that Google asks for users’ age upon signing up for an
account, and utilizes content filtering software.
In March of 2006 the district attorney tried to gather records from Google to assure their
compliance with the COPA, in a case entitled Gonzales v. Google. Other similar services
were subpoenaed, and complied, including AOL, Yahoo! Inc. and Microsoft, Inc. Google
objected to the subpoena, demanding a sample of URLs from Google's search index
which was to serve as a test of their content filtering software. Google refused to disclose
the information for multiple reasons, one being to maintain user trust. Privacy is
important to google, and users trust that Google will do whatever they can to protect the
privacy of their users. Their privacy policy does however state that they could not expect
Google to keep information from the Government. Their privacy statement states that
they will only protect personal information (such as name, email address, etc.) The URLs
were not considered personal information, as there were no identifyable data enclosed.
While the privacy expectations of some Google users are unreasonable, they do back up
Google's argument that such a search could impact the goodwill of Google's image. This
argument suffers however, because Google already discloses such information to a
service called Google Zeitgeist, which provides the top ten search queries by country, as
well as the top fifteen gaining search queries. The outcome of the case (Google was
required to disclose some information, however not the original request from the
Government) was based on factors other than the privacy issues, however it is important
to consider these issues. Google users should feel confident that Google will not disclose
their information without at least putting up a fight. The Electronic Communications
Privacy Act (ECPA) of 1986 protects Google and its users from governmental
observation of personal identifyable information, however not from agregated nonpersonal information.
Conclusions and Opinion
There are many privacy issues specific to Google, which are usually defined somewhere
within their privacy statement. Many users are not aware of the extent of information
Google has on them, however this information is available, so the ignorance of users is
their own fault. Google appears to maintin an ethical use of PII. They obtain and utilize
the PII for a profit, but profit is necessary for business, so one can't blame Google for
seeking a profit. According to their privacy policy, most of the information they collect is
to the users' advantage. Advertisements are customized to meet the interests and needs
(as calculated by Google) of users. To some, this seems scary, but as far as I'm concerned,
I'm happy to see ads that interest me and may be useful to me. Their analyses of
information are also used for further development of Google services, based on user
interest, which does not bother me either. I think it's exciting when Google comes out
with new useful software, and I'm not concerned if they determined an interest in such a
product by reviewing information they gathered from my search queries or even my emails. I'm personally not worried that some employee at Google might be reading my emails, but perhaps I should be.
Analysis of Google’s Legal Cases
Google themselves have been the subject of many suits and cases over the years, ranging
from trade secret, copyright, and database protection cases to contract cases. In order to
see what sorts of issues Google has dealt with in the past and to get an idea of how they
might deal with similar issues in the future, it’s important to see how they have reacted.
To do this, we’ve divided this section into two main parts, each dealing with a different
subset of legal cases that have involved Google either as plaintiff or defendant. First,
containing the bulk of cases, are the intellectual properties ones, having to do with
copyright protections and fair use guidelines, trade secret issues, and database protections.
Second, we will look at cases involving contract law and e-commerce protection. Of
course, some of these cases overlap, but each fits fairly well into a major heading. Note:
much of the original information for these cases was found at Westlaw and LexisNexis,
however registration is required so links cannot be provided.
IP Cases
Government Employees Insurance Company (GEICO) v. Google – Aug. 25, 2004
Facts:
GEICO alleged that Google was infringing on their trademark by showing links from
paid advertisers whenever a user did a web search for GEICO via the Google search
engine. They further stated that this constituted a trademark dilution under the Lanham
Act because Google was showing competitors ads when a user performed a search for
GEICO. For their part, Google stated that GEICO had no proof of intent to infringe on
their trademark and that the case should be summarily dismissed.
Legal Issue:
Does the fact that paid advertisers also show up on Google when a search for GEICO is
performed constitute a trademark infringement and possible dilution of the trademark?
Opinions:
In order for an action to be considered trademark infringement under the Lanham Act, it
must be shown that the alleged infringer a) possesses the mark, b) uses the mark, c) uses
the mark in commerce, d) uses the mark in connection with a sale, distribution or
advertising of goods and services, and e) is likely to confuse customers. In this case,
Google states that the trademarks were not used as a mechanism of commerce, nor were
they used in connection with any sort of sale. They also state that the use of the trademark
is very unlikely to confuse any customers since the relation between the GEICO
trademark and the competing ads is calculated internally, and never shown to a consumer.
However, just because the customer doesn’t ever see the calculations behind the scenes,
they are given competing ads when GEICO is entered into a web search. This could
constitute the selling of advertisements based on GEICO’s trademark and name. Because
of this, a good argument for the commercial use of the GEICO trademark is made, and
Google can be held liable for that use.
Holdings:
The sale of keyword-linked advertising constitutes a commercial use of GEICO’s
trademarks, and an injunction against the use of those trademarks is granted against
Google. However, GEICO failed to state a solid claim for interference under the Lanham
Act and as such, any liability or claim against Google based on that Act is dismissed.
Field v. Google – January 12, 2006
Facts:
Blake Field brought a copyright infringement suit against Google alleging that links made
to archived copies of Field’s website contained copyrighted material. He sought to get
statutory damages from Google in the amount of $2.5 million for the alleged republishing
of his works.
Legal Issue:
Is the automatic archiving of and linking to copyrighted works an infringement on
copyright?
Opinion:
There are billions of sites on the web, and as it would be impossible for Google to
manually index them, they have an automatic service that does the indexing and caching
of websites. When a user performs a search via Google, they are offered a list of websites
that meet their criteria, a short snippet of the website’s content, and a link to bring the
user directly to the website. In addition, there is also a link that will show the user a
cached copy of the website as it was when it was initially scanned by Google’s automatic
WebCrawler. The author of any website can request that Google remove all cached
versions of their site, a fact that the plaintiff was aware of. Because Field never told
Google that he didn’t want his website to be cached, he in effect granted them an implied
license to cache his webpages.
Holdings:
Because Google automatically crawled and cached webpages, they are not liable of
intentional copyright infringement. In addition, the author of the webpage knew that not
only would Google provide cached copies of his website but also that he could prevent
them, granting implied consent. The case is thereby dismissed.
Parker v. Google (2) – March 10, 2006
Facts:
Gordon Roy Parker alleged that Google was infringing on his copyright because they
archived a section of his book which he himself had posted on Google’s Usenet service.
He also alleged that any automatic linking to the archived post done by Google’s Usenet
indexing was likewise a copyright infringement. In addition, Parker said that Google was
vicariously liable for defamation because they had also archived negative posts about
Parker. For their part, Google asked that the case be dismissed.
Legal Issue:
Does automatic linking to copyrighted works constitute copyright infringement according
to the Copyright Act? Does archiving a defamatory post on a public service make the
archiving service liable for defamation?
Opinion:
On the issue of the alleged copyright infringement, there is a very important distinction in
the Copyright Act that states that to be found liable for infringement, an act “requires
conduct by a person who causes in some meaningful way an infringement.” This by in
large lets many ISPs off the hook because any alleged acts of infringement are done
automatically without any user intervention. The major point is that automatic caching
and archiving is not purposefully done with the intent to infringe on someone’s copyright.
On the second point, that of Google publishing defamatory remarks about Parker because
of their archive, the Communications Decency Act (§ 230(c)(1)) provides a “safe harbor”
for ISPs, stating that “most Internet services [are granted] immunity from liability for
publishing false or defamatory material so long as the information was provided by
another party.”
Holding:
Neither automatic linking nor automatic archiving of past materials can count towards
copyright infringement. Likewise, any archived remarks made by others that are republished on an Internet service do not make the ISP liable for defamation due to safe
harbor. Because of these two facts, the case has been dismissed.
Perfect 10 v. Google – February 21, 2006
Facts:
Perfect 10 (P10) is the publisher of an adult magazine and adult website which provides
high quality images of nude models for download and viewing by paying subscribers.
Google’s image search feature was able to automatically search through and cache these
images to provide thumbnail copies of them on the search engine. P10 alleges that this
constitutes copyright infringement of their images. Google on the other hand says that
their automatic indexing and caching of small thumbnails of the images constitutes fair
use and should not be considered direct infringement.
Legal Issue:
Does Google’s Image Search infringe on the copyright of each image owner, or is that
thumbnail copy covered under fair use guidelines?
Opinion:
In order to prove infringement, the plaintiff must prove two things: that they have a valid
copyright and that the defendant has violated one of their exclusive rights under
copyright law. The fact that P10 holds the copyright is indisputable, so the second point
must be addressed. To begin with, Google’s image search only shows a thumbnail sized
image. When the user clicks on the thumbnail, it links directly back to the origin of the
full sized image, in this case, back to P10’s website. So Google is not actually
reproducing the original content; they are merely linking to it. This essentially supports
the fact that Google does not store or reproduce any full sized images on their Image
Search site. This leaves the thumbnails on Google’s servers and an examination of their
validity under fair use. First, to be considered for fair use, the purpose and character of
the use must be looked at. Google does gain a commercial benefit from the thumbnails
due to their AdSense and AdWords programs, weighing slightly in favor of P10.
However, because the images are resized to a fraction of their original dimensions
however, the court finds that Google’s use is transformative. Secondly, the nature of the
copyrighted work must be examined. In this case, P10’s photos are creative in nature and
are considered artistic works, thus, this also weighs in P10’s favor. Third is the amount of
the work used. Because these are thumbnails, the court finds that Google has used no
more than was necessary to provide their public service, and as such, are covered under
fair use for this part. Finally, while the thumbnails don’t affect the value of the full size
images on P10’s website, they do affect the sales of smaller sized images for cell phone
use. In this manner, Google’s use does infringe and the court finds slightly in P10s favor
here.
Holding:
Google’s thumbnails are not covered under Fair Use in this case as three of the four tests
for fair use are found slightly in favor of the plaintiff. For this reason, the court grants a
preliminary injunction against Google with regards to displaying thumbnails of P10’s
images.
NetJumper Software, L.L.C v. Google – March 29, 2006
Facts:
NetJumper Software has a patent on a piece of software that allows the user to do web
navigation via a floating popup window. While the floating window is how the software
is usually used, it can also be integrated into a web browser to dock along any of the four
sides of the window. They allege that the Google Toolbar infringes on their patent
because it can do many of the same things. Google alleges that NetJumper’s software is
not only meant to display in a separate window, but that there was also prior art before
NetJumper’s patent and that their patent should thus be invalid.
Legal Issue:
Does a piece of software that is functionally similar to but visually different from another
piece of software infringe on its patent?
Opinions:
In the patent for the NetJumper software, they not only clearly describe the function of
their program, but they also describe its location. While Google claims that the patent
states that the NetJumper software must be run in a free floating window, the patent
actually does include a broader list of possibilities:
“In alternate embodiments the jumper window may take any of several forms. The user
interface may include popup or persistent window, a toolbar, a menu modification of the
browser window, a toolbar modification of the browser window, or the use of accelerator
keys on the keyboard.”
Because of this, and the fact that the Google Toolbar performs a functionally identical set
of instructions, the NetJumper patent is upheld. On the second claim, that the NetJumper
patent is invalid, Google must by law provide a clear and convincing case for the
invalidity, which they have not done.
Holdings:
The NetJumper patent is not only valid, but Google’s Toolbar is also in violation of
patent infringement.
Contract/E-Commerce
SearchKing, Inc. v Google – May 27, 2003
Facts:
Google uses a PageRank system to numerically show how useful, relevant, and
significant a certain website is. These PageRanks are automatically generated by an
algorithm that Google uses in their internal processes. SearchKing was a company that
sold advertising based on PageRank, charging higher premiums for ads based on pages
with higher rankings. In July of 2002, SearchKing had a PageRank of 8. In August of
2002, SearchKing, and their partner site, the PR Ad Network (PRAN), had their
PageRanks reduced to 4 and 0 respectively. SearchKing alleged that the rankings were
intentionally and maliciously tampered with and that the devaluation adversely impacted
their business model and sued Google for tortious interference. Google on the other hand
asserts that PageRanks are considered protected speech and that they are thus immune
from any liability.
Legal Issue:
Is the Google PageRank system simply a subjective opinion, and thus has first
amendment protection?
Opinion:
SearchKing believes that the PageRank system is objectively verifiable and that, because
the algorithm that performs the page rankings is patented, it must be objective and
replicable. This argument is not without merit, but it does not make a distinction between
a process and a result. In the case of Google’s PageRank system, the algorithm behind the
scenes is objective in nature, and represents the process which helps to shape the
PageRanks. The actual value and result however is published by Google, and is therefore
highly subjective in nature. It was this subjective result that was modified, and as such, it
is that which SearchKing has brought action against. These PageRanks are therefore
considered opinions of Google, not objectively verifiable facts, and as such should be
considered protected speech. Furthermore, constitutionally protected speech is per se
lawful and can not give rise to any action for tortious interference even if the speech is
motivated by ill will.
Holdings:
Because the PageRank rankings are considered protected speech, there is no real action
for SearchKing to legally bring a suit against. The case is thereby dismissed.
Microsoft v. Google (2) – October 27, 2005
Facts:
Dr. Kai-Fu Lee began working for Microsoft in 1998 and signed a Non-Compete
Agreement with them. In May of 2005, Lee left Microsoft and was hired by Google.
Microsoft immediately brought an injunction against Google and Dr. Lee, stating that his
Non-Compete Agreement should be upheld.
Legal Issue:
Does a Non-Compete Agreement from Washington State apply in California, and can it
be upheld?
Holding:
Dr. Lee’s Non-Compete Agreement is binding and a temporary injunction is granted.
Christina Elwell v. Google – Jan. 30, 2006
Facts:
Christina Elwell was employed by Google and promoted in 2004 to their National Sales
Director for North America. That same year, she became pregnant with quintuplets and
stated that she would be unable to travel for a while during her pregnancy. She was
subsequently demoted, fired, and then re-hired in a lower grade position. During her
disability leave, she was paid less than expected and rude comments about her were made
by her boss, Timothy Armstrong. She consequently sued Google and Armstrong for
employment discrimination and retaliation. Google responded by issuing a motion to
compel arbitration.
Legal Question:
Can Google force arbitration in this case?
Opinion:
Under the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA), any case in which arbitration is possible and in
which a contract exists that states arbitration shall be used in the case of disputes, must be
settled via arbitration. In this case, Elwell’s initial employment contract contained a
clause for arbitration in the settlement of disputes. Even though that arbitration clause
was broad and non-specific, it does apply to any employment related disputes brought by
the employee and, according to the FAA, it is the court’s duty to move the dispute into
arbitration instead.
Holding:
Google’s case is granted: the dispute must be tried in arbitration.
Carl E. Person v. Google – Oct. 11, 2006
Facts:
Carl Person tried to purchase a number of Google ad-words for use during his 2006
campaign for Attorney General in New York. When he tried to purchase a number of
very low ranked, and thus minimally priced, ad-words for his website, he was told that
the words were not available for use. He also tried some more useful ad-words, and found
that the prices charged for those words were, in his estimation, exorbitant. He thus alleges
that Google’s AdWords program is intentionally monopolistic and meant to prevent small
businesses from purchasing any ad-words by pricing ad-words out of the range of a small
business customer. Rather than respond to this directly, Google stated that since Mr.
Person had signed a contract governing the use of ad-words, and that that contract had a
forum selection clause, the case should be closed in New York and moved to California.
Legal Issue:
Is the forum selection clause binding and will it cause Mr. Person undue complications
for his suit?
Opinion:
To begin with, the court has the right to examine a forum selection clause to see if it is
fair and balanced and not simply included to grant the holder of the contract the ability to
‘forum shop’. However, the forum clause must be upheld if the court finds that it is not
meant to block legal action from taking place. In this case, the plaintiff had signed the
contract, meaning that he had prior notice of the clause, and had agreed to the terms help
within. In addition, he would still be able to bring suit and attend court if the case were
tried in California. Likewise, he made no case to show that the courts in California would
try the case any differently from the court of New York.
Holding:
The case is hereby transferred to the venue chosen in the contract.
Conclusion and Opinions
Looking over the number of cases that Google has been involved in and looking at how
they have performed in these cases shows a fairly even mix of victories and defeats over
the past few years. However, the overall trend seems to show that the courts are willing to
give Google the benefit of the doubt in many instances. Many existing laws, such as the
Digital Millennium Copyright Act, Communications Decency Act, and the Copyright Act
of 1976 give Google a series of protections with regards to republishing, storing, and
linking to copyrighted material. Perhaps it is because of these protections that a company
the size of Google has comparatively few large legal cases against it. As they move into
new markets however and increase their influence over the Internet (such as through their
recent purchase of YouTube), that could be expected to change.
Potential Future Legal Issues
Google libraries- book scanning:
Google’s Print for Libraries program is a project being developed to scan millions of the
world’s books to make them searchable online. The Association of American University
Presses is outraged by this project and accuses Google of posing a risk of “systematic
infringement of copyright on a massive scale.” The AAUP claims that the project has a
potential risk of serious financial damage to the group’s membership.
One of the major concerns with this project is that publishers are worried Google might
someday distribute these digital copies of copyrighted books without the author’s
approval. Publishers dispute that libraries do not have the legal right to digitize
copyrighted books by giving it to Google. Another issue is piracy. Google must make
sure they protect all copyrighted material.
The main argument involves the fair use section of the copyright statute. Some experts
believe that Google does not interrupt the market for purchasing these books, which
heavily favors Google. Others believe that this project could open liability for potential
copyright infringement if all the concerns aren’t settled now between all parties.
Google and YouTube
Google’s latest acquisition of YouTube may trigger many copyright lawsuits in the near
future. Google may be exposing itself when it comes to liability for copyright violations.
Youtube supposedly deletes any copyrighted video when notified, and is trying to make a
system that automatically filters out the copyrighted material.
A problem with this is that most homemade videos, which are allowed by the site, use
such things as copyrighted music in the background. These people obviously didn’t get
permission from the copyright owner to play the music. In order for Google to avoid
these potential lawsuits it must work out some kind of agreement with the music, TV, and
movie companies that are out to get Google.
Google’s ad system:
Google will always have the possibility of facing cases addressing trademark protection
in Google’s ad system. Google receives most of its profits from ad revenue. There has
already been a case between Geico and Google involving this matter.
Google Desktop:
This Google product brings on a major privacy issue with consumers. This service stores
copies of users' files such as pdf’s, word documents and spreadsheets and makes them
searchable from any other user’s computer. This makes user’s personal information is
extremely vulnerable to government subpoenas, private litigants, as well as hackers.
With all the privacy issues Google has faced already, it seems ridiculous that people are
going to trust Google with their personal computers. If the user does not choose their
options carefully, then Google could possibly have copies of tax returns, love letters,
business records, financial and medical records. The government only needs a subpoena
to acquire this information instead of a search warrant if they were to acquire it from a
computer in someone’s home.
The Electronic Communication Privacy act only gives limited privacy protection for
emails and other files stored with online service providers. If Google were to use one’s
data for marketing purposes that limited privacy protection would be gone, and Google’s
current privacy policy allows that. Privacy laws are outdated allowing for this type of
activity. Until laws are updated users are going to have to give up most f their privacy if
they want to use these new technologies.
Antitrust
Google may become more susceptible to future antitrust lawsuits as the company keeps
on growing and expanding. Since Google is such a high power on the Internet, it is more
likely to run into antitrust problems. With its patented rating system, Google has the
potential to make or break other companies. Google currently faces lawsuits from
companies such as KinderStart, the search engine for kids that plummeted from Google’s
rankings. This seems to be a practice that may hurt businesses like KinderStart and has
the potential to present Google with antitrust problems.
Some claim that there is no future antitrust litigation in Google’s future. As long as
Google remains to be the leading search engine, they can take over as much of the market
as they want. Others still believe that if Google does this cleanly they’re still vulnerable
to antitrust lawsuits and can be a “victim of its own success.”
Conclusion
As long as Google is around there will always be lawsuits brought against them. With
the amount of information Google collects from its users, will always face some type of
legal problems. With every new service Google comes up with there will always be
some type of copyright or privacy issue, with other individuals or organizations trying to
take their money.
Google has a huge team of legal experts looking after and defending every issue that is
brought up. Google faces lawsuits all the time, usually small cases that are usually settle
between the two parties before the courts get involved. It would take a lot for Google to
ever get in any real big legal problems.
Conclusions
“Don’t be Evil.” That has been Google’s motto from the very beginning, and it has
served as a very broad moral compass for the company. In looking over the history of the
company, it is easy to see that they have certainly kept themselves busy with designing
new ways to increase their revenue streams, but it’s harder to see just where the evil isn’t
being done. It is clear that Google is trying to become the single most indispensable tool
on the web however, by creating web based utilities for the masses. With such powerful
tools as Google Search, G-Mail, Google Calendar, and now Video and Image searching
capabilities, Google is poised to give Internet users a one-stop shopping solution.
Where this potentially becomes a problem, and where their business models dive right to
the heart of their unwillingness to “be evil”, is when one realizes that Google gathers
marketing information and PII from every single person who touches one of their
multitude of services. This has brought Google up against many companies who dislike
exactly how Google uses that information, as can be seen in the legal cases we have
highlighted. It also has forced Google to do battle with the biggest user of PII in the
country, the U.S. Government. It is in that particular case where we start to see Google’s
motto take effect, and we see the morality of the company’s founders standing up to
protect their users and their user’s rights. Juxtaposed against the complete willingness of
many of America’s telecommunications companies to provide the Government with
whatever they ask for, this definitely shows Google in a better light.
So the question remains, will Google continue to act as they have and provide some
measure of safety for the massive volumes of information that they have collected? Only
time will tell, but, based on the research that we have done, and the legal cases that
Google has been involved in, we feel confident that they will. Their willingness to allow
users to opt-out of automatic linking and searches, their relatively open policies with
regards to how they use PII and how they protect it, and their relatively clean past with
regards to how that information has been used, all point towards a positive future for the
mega-giant. And hopefully, they’ll continue to be good to all of us.
Appendix 1
Products and Services
Taken verbatim from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Google_products
Reproduction permitted under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License
Desktop applications
These are computer programs from Google.
Product
Summary
Development
stage
Blogger Web Comments
Blogger Web Comments is a
Mozilla Firefox browser extension,
that displays related comments from
Blogger sites.
Browser Sync
Google Browser Sync for Firefox is
Version 1.2 (Labs)
an extension that continuously
synchronizes web browser settings,
including bookmarks, history, cookies
and saved passwords, across multiple
computers. It also allows users to
restore open tabs and windows across
different machines and browser
sessions. [1]
Dashboard Widgets for Mac Google Dashboard Widgets for
Mac are small applications that
appear on the Mac OS. Widgets
include interaction with Gmail,
Blogger and Search History.
Desktop
Google Desktop is a desktop search
application, that makes e-mails,
documents, music, photos, chat and
web history searchable. It allows the
installation of Google Gadgets, which
are similar to Mac OS X's widgets.
[2]
Labs
Labs
Version 4
Earth
Google Earth is a free, downloadable
virtual globe application. It maps the
entire earth by pasting images
obtained from satellite imagery, aerial
photography and GIS over a 3D
globe. [3]
Version 3
Version 4 (Beta)
Gmail Notifier
Gmail Notifier is an application for
Windows that alerts the user of new
messages in their Gmail account. [4]
Hello
Hello is a free application that allows
users to send images across the
Internet and publish them to their
blogs. [5]
Unknown
Notifier for Mac
Google Notifier for Mac is an
application for Mac OSX which
informs the user of new emails
through the Gmail service and of
upcoming events from the users
personal Google Calendar. [6].
Unknown
Pack
Google Pack is a collection of
computer applications, including
Google Earth, Google Desktop,
Picasa, Google Talk, Mozilla Firefox
and more. It was released on January
6, 2006. [7]
Beta
Picasa
Picasa is a downloadable photoorganization application. Users can
organize photos into albums and
collections, view in various orders,
apply simple effects, create
slideshows, print and order physical
prints. There is a Microsoft Windows
version [8] and a Linux version [9]
available.
Windows:Version
2.5
Linux version:
Labs
Send to Phone
Google Send to Phone is a Firefox
extension that allows users to send
text messages to their mobile phone
about web content.
Labs
SketchUp
Google SketchUp is a simple 3D
sketching program with many of the
Unknown
tools a professional 3D program has.
SketchUp models can be directly
imported into Google Earth and can
be skinned with various pre-made
colors and textures. [10]
Talk
Google Talk is a windows
application for VoIP and instant
messaging. Google Talk beta was
released on August 24, 2005. It
consists of both a service and a client
used to connect to the service. It is
integrated with Gmail. [11]
Version 1 (Beta)
Toolbar
Google Toolbar is an internet
browser toolbar available for
Microsoft Internet Explorer and
Mozilla Firefox (with slightly
different features). Features include,
but not limited to, Google search bar,
phishing protection, feed
subscription, spellcheck, autofill,
translator and pop-up blocker. There
is a version for Internet Explorer [12]
and a version for Mozilla Firefox [13]
Firefox: Version 2
Internet Explorer:
Version 4
Video Player
Google Video Player allows you to
watch videos downloaded from
Google Video and resume video
downloads automatically. [14]
Unknown
Web Accelerator
Google Web Accelerator is a
download that uses various strategies
to increase the speed of browsing.
[15]
Unknown (Labs)
Web applications
These are applications, including search engines, that are web-based.
Advertising
Product
AdSense
Summary
Google AdSense is an advertisement program for website
owners. Adverts generate revenue on either a per-click or
per-thousand-ads-displayed basis, and are adverts shown
are from AdWords users, depending on which adverts are
relevant. [16]
AdWords
Google AdWords is Google's flagship advertising product,
and main source of revenue. AdWords offers pay-per-click
(PPC) advertising, and site-targeted advertising for both
text and banner ads. [17]
Analytics
Google Analytics is a free service that generates traffic
statistics for defined websites. Webmasters can optimize
their ad campaigns, based on the statistics that are given.
Analytics is based on previous Urchin software. [18]
Click-to-Call
Google Click-to-Call is a service which allows users to
call advertisers for free at Google's expense from search
results pages. [19]
Grants
Google Grants is a scheme for non-profit organizations to
benefit from free Cost-Per-Click advertising on the
AdWords network. [20]
Website Optimizer
Google Website Optimizer, released on October 18, 2006,
is a tool to test different website content, in order to gain to
the most successful advertising campaigns. It is fully
integrated with AdWords, and is currently only available to
selected beta testers. [21]
Aggregration
Product
Personalized Home
Summary
Google Personalized Homepage is a customizable,
modular, tabular, dynamic page which a user can access
through their Google Account. It was launched in May
2005. The user selects the content of the page from RSS
feeds as well as specialized modules known as Google
Gadgets. Multiple page tabs can also be created. [22]
Google Reader is a web-based news aggregator, capable of
reading Atom and RSS feeds. It allows the user to search,
import and subscribe to feeds. The service also embeds
audio enclosures in the page. Major revisions to Google
Reader were made in October 2006. [23]
Reader
Communication & Publishing
Product
Summary
Apps for Your Domain and Apps for Education Google Apps for Your Domain
service combines Gmail, Google
Calendar, Google Talk, and Google
Page Creator into a single offering
targeted to small businesses and
educational institutions. Includes
Administrator's control panel for
managing services and users, and
makes the services work with client's
domain. Apps for Your Domain; Apps
for Education
Blogger
Blogger is a weblog publishing tool.
Users can create a customisable, hosted
blog with features such as photo
publishing, comments, group blogs,
blogger profiles and mobile-based
posting with little technical knowledge.
[24]
Calendar
Google Calendar is a free online
calendar. It includes a unique "quick
add" function, that inserts events from
natural language input. Other features
include Gmail integration and calendar
sharing. It is similar to those offered by
Yahoo! and MSN. [25]
Docs & Spreadsheets
Docs & Spreadsheets combines both
previous applications Spreadsheets and
Writely into a single interface. It was
released on October 11, 2006. [26]
Dodgeball
Dodgeball is a social networking site
built specifically for use on mobile
phones. Users text their location to the
service, which then notifies them of
crushes, friends, friends' friends and
interesting venues nearby. [27]
Gmail
Gmail is a free webmail and POP email service provided by Google,
known for its abundant storage and
advanced interface. Its competitors
include AIM Mail, MSN Hotmail /
Windows Live Mail, and Yahoo! Mail.
It was first released in an invitation-
only form on April 1, 2004. [28]
Joga Bonito
Joga Bonito is an Internet community
for those interested in soccer. It is
similar to services like as MySpace, in
that each member has a profile, and can
join groups based on shared interests.
The service allows a user to meet other
fans, create games and clubs, access
athletes from Nike, and watch and
upload video clips and photos. [29]
JotSpot
JotSpot is an application wiki
company that offers enterprise social
software and was founded by Joe Kraus
and Graham Spencer, co-founders of
Excite. The product is targeted mainly
to small and medium-sized businesses.
It was acquired by Google on October
31, 2006[30]
Measure Map
Measure Map provides statistics for
blog writers. It was launched on
February 2, 2006. [31]
Notebook
Google Notebook provides a simple
way to save and organize information
when conducting research online. The
tool permits users to clip text, images,
and links from pages while browsing,
save them online, access them from any
computer, and share them with others.
[32]
Orkut
Orkut is a social networking service,
where users can list their personal and
professional information, create
relationships amongst friends and join
communities of mutual interest. New
Orkut accounts are by invitation only
from an existing member. [33]
Page Creator
Google Page Creator is a webpublishing program, which can be used
to create pages and to host them on
Google's servers. [34]
Picasa Web Albums
Picasa Web Albums is Picasa’s
newest feature, designed to help users
post and share their photos quickly and
easily on the web. [35]
YouTube
YouTube is a popular online video
sharing service. On October 9, 2006,
Google announced that it would
purchase YouTube for $1.65 billion in
stock.
Development
Product
Summary
Code
Google Code is Google's site for developers interested in
Google-related development. The site contains Open
Source code and lists of their API services. [36]
Code Search
Google Code Search is a search engine for programming
code found on the Internet.[37]
Co-op
Google Co-op is a platform for users to expand and apply
Google Search to specific sites and topics. Currently, there
is Custom Search Engine, Subscribed Links and Topics.
[38]
Sitemaps
Google Sitemaps is part of Google Webmaster Tools, and
allows users to create a file that lists the URLs on the site
for better indexing. [39]
Web API
The Google Web API is Google's public interface for
registered developers. Using Simple Object Access
Protocol (SOAP), a programmer can write services for
search and data mining that rely on Google's results. Also,
users can view cached pages and make suggestions for
better spelling. [40]
Web Toolkit
Google Web Toolkit allows users to create AJAX
interfaces for their websites by "compiling" Java apps into
JavaScript. Google claimed it could be used to create
similar interfaces to that of Gmail and Google Calendar.
[41]
Mapping
Product
Summary
Maps
Google Maps provides maps, satellite imagery, driving
directions and local search for the USA, Canada, the UK,
France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Australia and New Zealand.
It is also available as a mobile service in some countries.
[42]
Mars
Google Mars provides imagery of Mars, using the Google
Maps interface. Elevation, visible imagery and infrared
imagery can be shown. It was released on March 13, 2006,
the anniversary of the birth of astronomer Percival Lowell.
[43]
Moon
Google Moon provides NASA imagery of the moon
through the Google Maps interface. It was launched on July
20, 2005, in honor of the first manned Moon landing on
July 20, 1969. [44]
Ride Finder
Google Ride Finder is a service that allows users to find a
taxi, limousine or shuttle using real time position of
vehicles in 14 US cities. Ride Finder uses the Google Maps
interface and cooperates with any car service that wishes to
participate. [45]
Transit
Google Transit provides public transport trip planning
through the Google Maps interface. Google Transit was
released on December 7, 2005, and is currently available in
six cities. [46]
Search
Product
Summary
Accessible Search
Google Accessible Search is a search engine, aimed at the
blind and visually impaired. It prioritises usable and
accessible web sites in the search results, so the user incurs
minimal distractions when browsing. [47]
Alerts
Google Alerts is an e-mail notification service, which
sends alerts based on chosen search terms, whenever the
are new results. Alerts include web results, Groups results
and news. [48]
Answers
Google Answers allows users to pay approved researchers
to answer questions. Once a question has been resolved,
they can be browsed or searched for free. [49]
Base
Google Base enables content owners to submit content,
have it hosted and make it easily searchable via Google.
Information within the database is described using labels
and attributes. [50]
Blog Search
Google Blog Search is a search engine for blogs, with a
continiously-updated search index. Results include all
blogs, not just those published through Blogger. Results
can be viewed and filtered by date. [51]
Bookmarks
Google Bookmarks is a free online bookmark storage
service available to Google Account holders which
organizes bookmarks with tags. Bookmarks labelled
homepage will be displayed on the user's Personalized
Homepage. [52]
Book Search
Google Book Search is a search engine for the full text of
printed books. Google scans and stores in its digital
database. The content that is displayed depends on the
arrangement with the publishers, ranging from short
extracts to entire books. [53]
Catalogs
Google Catalogs is a search engine for over 6,600 print
catalogs, which are acquired through Optical character
recognition. [54]
Checkout
Google Checkout is an online payment processing service
provided by Google aimed at simplifying the process of
paying for online purchases. Webmasters can choose
to implement Google Checkout as a form of payment. This
service is currently only available to US residents. [55]
Directory
Google Directory is a collection of links arranged into
hierarchical subcategories. The links and their
categorization are from the Open Directory Project, but are
sorted using PageRank. [56]
Finance
Google Finance features searchable US business news,
opinion, and financial data. Features include companyspecific pages, blog search, interactive charts, executives
information, discussion groups and a portfolio. [57]
Froogle
Froogle is a price engine that searches online stores,
including auctions, for products. It is also offered in
Wireless Markup Language (WML) form as Froogle
Mobile. [58]
Groups
Google Groups is a searchable Usenet archive. As well as
searching, users can join a group, make a group, publish
posts, track their favorite topics, write a set of group web
pages updatable by members and share group files. [59].
On October 4, 2006 a beta version of Google Groups was
released. New features include the ability to create
customised pages and share files, such as photos or music.
[60]
Image Labeler
Google Image Labeler is a game that induces participants
to submit valid descriptions (labels) of images in the web,
in order to later improve image search. [61]
Image Search
Google Image search is a search engine for images.
Results are based on the filename of the image, the link text
pointing to the image, and text adjacent to the image. When
searching, a thumbnail of each matching image is
displayed. [62]
Mobile
Google Mobile allows users to search using Google from
wireless devices such as mobile phones and PDAs. [63]
Music Trends
Google Music Trends shows a ranking of the songs played
with iTunes, Winamp, Windows Media Player and Yahoo
Music. Trends are generated by Google Talk's "share your
music status" feature. [64]
Language Tools
Google Language Tools is a collection of applications,
including one that allows users to translate text or web
pages from one language to another, and another that
allows searching in web pages located in a specific country
or written in a specific language. [65]
News
Google News is an automated news compilation service
and search engine for news. There are versions of the
aggregator for more than 20 languages. While the selection
of news stories is fully automated, the sites included are
selected by human editors. [66]
News Archive Search
Google News Archive Search is a feature within Google
News, that allows users to browse articles from over 200
years ago. [67]
Personalized Search
Google Personalized Search prioritizes Google search
results based on previous search habits. Search History
keeps a record of all searches and clicked results while a
user is logged into a Google Account and allows this to be
accessed and searched. This also tracks queries made to
Google Images and Google News. [68]
Scholar
Google Scholar a search engine for the full text of
scholarly literature across an array of publishing formats
and scholarly fields. Today, the index includes virtually all
peer-reviewed journals available online, except those
published by Elsevier, the world's largest scientific
publisher. [69]
SearchMash
SearchMash is a search engine that means to "test
innovative user interfaces." Among its features are the
ability to reorder search results, a URL menu, image results
on the same page as web results, and continuous scrolling
results. Aside from its privacy policy and terms of service,
there is no Google branding on the site.[70]
Sets
Google Sets attempts to make a list of items when the user
enters a few examples. For example, entering "Green,
Purple, Red" produces the list "Green, Purple, Red, Blue,
Black, White, Yellow, Orange, Brown. [71]
SMS
Google SMS is a mobile phone short message service
offered by Google in several countries, including the USA,
Japan, Canada, Germany, Spain and formerly the UK. It
allows search queries to be sent as a text message. The
results are sent as a reply, with no premium charge for the
service.[72]
Special Searches
Google Special Searches is a collection of search engines,
tailored to a particular topic. These include U.S.
Government Search, Linux Search, BSD Search, Apple
Macintosh Search, and a Microsoft Windows Search. There
is also Google University Search, which lets you select a
particular university, then search within their own site, and
Google Public Service Search, a service intended for noncommercial organizations only. [73]
Suggest
Google Suggest uses auto-complete while typing to give
popular searches. It is still in beta stage. [74]
Trends
Google Trends shows, as a graph, the popularity of
particular search terms over time. Multiple terms can be
shown at once. Results can also be displayed by city, region
or language. Related news stories are also shown. [75]
Video
Google Video allows users to search, buy, watch and
upload videos. Users can also see stills and closed caption
transcripts of some videos. Search is based on title,
keywords, network and transcript. Google has signed
agreements with CBS and the NBA to offer some programs
online. [76]
Web Search
Google Web Search is their core product, a Web search
engine. It was the company's first creation, coming out of
beta on September 21, 1999, and remains by far their most
popular and famous: it receives 200 million requests a day
and is the largest search engine on the Internet.[77]
Zeitgeist
Google Zeitgeist is a collection of lists of the most frequent
search queries. There are weekly, monthly and yearly lists,
as well as topic and country specific lists. [78]
Miscellaneous
Product
Summary
Labs
Google Labs lists all of Google's experimental projects,
that are not yet widely available. [79]
Store
Google Store sells a range of physical Google-branded
products. These include clothes, toys, office equipment and
lava lamps. [80]
Previous products
Past applications created by Google, that are either no longer available or have been rebranded.
Product
Summary
Local
Google integrated it's existing Mapping service (known as Google
Maps) into the company's local directory service (known as
Google Local). The product was later renamed to Google Maps.
Print
Google Print was the name for Google's book search engine,
before it was renamed to Google Book Search.
Spreadsheets
Google announced Spreadsheets on 6 June 2006, and initially
made it available to only a limited number of users, on a firstcome, first-serve basis. The limited test was then lifted, and
replaced with a beta version available to all Google Account
holders. Spreadsheets was merged into Google Docs &
Spreadsheets.
Writely
Writely was an online word-processor created by software
company Upstartle. On March 9, 2006 Google acquired Upstartle.
On October 10, 2006, Writely was merged into Google Docs &
Spreadsheets.
Google X
Google X was a re-designed Google search homepage, that used a
Mac OS style interface. It appeared in Google Labs, but was
removed the day after.