In a New York Times article about how Google is adding inventory information from local merchants into Google Base, John Markoff (a writer who, until this very moment, I had a great deal of respect for) says:
Many publishers had become concerned about the potential of Google Base, which could allow the company to dominate the classified advertising business. Now, publishers of services like the Yellow Pages are facing a competitive threat from Google.
(emphasis added)
My God, John, have you even looked at Google Base? Is this what you have to do to get on Google’s short list of publications they ping before launch? Write whatever they tell you to? These statements are…unsupportable.
Later in the article John marches in Marshal Cohen from the NPD Group, someone else who’s apparently never looked at Google Base:
Marshal Cohen, chief retail analyst at NPD Group, a market research firm in Port Washington, N.Y., said that if Froogle delivered up-to the-minute inventory updates from retailers, “consumers will finally know whether a trip to a store is worthwhile.”
“The only thing missing from the online retailing equation is ‘Do they have what I want,’ ” Mr. Cohen said. “But putting inventory on the Web, by store location, means now all of a sudden I have that final piece of the puzzle.”
Yep, I guess they finally found that final piece of the puzzle to fix Froogle.
In my opinion, Froogle should have been taken out back and shot years ago. Has anyone ever used it to find or sell a product successfully?
I just love this quote from the middle of the article:
The limitation of the service, Google acknowledged, is that the inventory information might not be precise or necessarily up to date.
I’m sure nobody will mind.
Good rant, Mike. I’ve also been wondering about what the fuss was about with Google Base. It seems like half a service. Sure, you can upload database entries, but what for? Why not host that database on your own site, serve your own ads and wait for the Googlebots to spider it anyway? I think most of the Base boosters have been imposing their own world-killing wishlist of high concepts on what is in reality a different service than they want it to be.
On a Tinfinger note, I’m glad to click through on “people profiles” and see wall to wall pr0n spam. I don’t think we have anything to worry about from Google Base.
I use Froogle every time I buy electronics or other high priced items. I just bought a digital camera last week from a site I found through Froogle. Maybe it’s trying to be too much, but I’ve definitely found it useful for certain purchases.
Actually, I’ve used Froogle once to locate a nice map of Mordor, but that’s about it. Its sources seem just a tad too unreliable. Regarding Base, well, it’s a mess. I don’t see any immediate threat or advantage Base could pose/possess (I knew I’d have to end that sentence awkwardly like that).
Didn’t one or two of those kids interviewed at Web 2.0 say they used Froogle? I mostly use pricegrabber, but occasionally check froogle.
Overall I usually just buy from Amazon, lowest price be damned.
Froogle will not be important as long as Google is ignoring Europe. But hey, why are we allways talking about “[..] will be the next [..]” like it’s gonna happen tomorrow? Maybe in six years we will look back and say “hey, the day [..] launched [..] was an important moment in internet history”.
“The only thing missing from the online retailing equation is ‘Do they have what I want,’ †Mr. Cohen said. “But putting inventory on the Web, by store location, means now all of a sudden I have that final piece of the puzzle.â€
There is a reason why this is the only thing missing. Maintaining accurate inventory numbers across hundreds or thousands of retail locations is surprisingly hard for more retailers than you would think. Hopefully retailers that are currently feeding Froogle inventory by location are updating daily and with some level of conservative imprecision.
Funny because I actually used Froogle for finding something recently. I almost always use Amazon because I get good service, no taxes and free shipping. Then I went to buy something from them that was actually being sold through Amazon but coming from somewhere else…taxes and shipping this time. Went to Froogle, found the same item for less, no taxes, did have to pay shipping but it was still lower than the original Amazon listed price.
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