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Google sends anti-regulation propaganda to small businesses using Google Maps

arstechnica.com

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Re: Google sends anti-regulation propaganda to small businesses using Google Maps

#41

Post by SahAssar »

KingOfCoders wrote: post #30
SahAssar wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's not true. The local newspaper didn't have control over the paper maps people had and tourists bought, They didn't control the phonebook, they didn't handle your mail, they didn't track every store you entered and article you opened. I think you gravely overestimate the power that local newspapers had.

They did all the local reviews and reporting on businesses. YMMV but growing up in the 70s and 80s and working in the 90s in several startups in Germany, the local newspaper and their clique in smaller towns (50-100k people) controlled business perceptions and could make you fly or crash. I'm happy for Google reviews today, because Google has an agenda, but not about ratings on your businesses - not like the local ne…

But saying that this isn't new makes it seem like google only replaced the services the local newspaper previously provided. That is not true.

Re: Google sends anti-regulation propaganda to small businesses using Google Maps

#42

Post by netcan »

t0mas88 wrote: post #36
netcan wrote: post #21

It's almost a microcosm of the issue. OOH, Google can do what they want. Why can't they campaign for or against stuff, enlist their customers, and such. OTOH... Google are the gate to online information. Google "lobbying" is not like a normal company lobbying the public.

They can do what they want, but it's the role of the media to call out bullshit so the public is more informed. That's what this article is doing, pointing out how extreme Google is framing things here while the thruth could be very different.

I disagree.

First, Google (and FB/amzn, which also have dogs in this) are extremely powerful within the media industry. So, their shadow looms very long here.

Second, thinking of these issues as running via media through to an informed public to an attentive political structure is far too naive.

Political mechanisms are rarely about for Vs against. It's about defining the debate, legislation and it's details.

Google have a ton of influence in many sectors. Small businesses are one. News media is another. Enlisting these to achieve their political goals is corporatism.

Re: Google sends anti-regulation propaganda to small businesses using Google Maps

#43

Post by otagekki »

giga_chad wrote: post #26

Google has us all by the balls. As a small business owner, in my particular market, I can't survive without their services, even though they suck and I hate them, and their entire company. My business can be destroyed by Google on a whim at a moment's notice. How did it get to be so bad?

OpenStreetMaps could be used as a good enough alternative and could easily be the Wikipedia for Maps, but sadly the search results on Google would never allow that.

Re: Google sends anti-regulation propaganda to small businesses using Google Maps

#44

Post by eru »

danuker wrote: post #25
BurningPenguin wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I may be wrong since i'm not american, but it seems like unions are generally a controversial topic in the US.

Not all people realize the bargaining power of a huge corporation is much different than that of an individual. If a company of 100 people fires a worker, they lose 1% of productivity. If a worker loses their job, they lose 100% of income. This fundamental asymmetry makes me support unions. On top of that, the corporation can afford paying to shift people's opinions.

Compare and contrast https://pseudoerasmus.com/2017/10/02/ijd/

Re: Google sends anti-regulation propaganda to small businesses using Google Maps

#45

Post by eru »

jiggawatts wrote: post #7
vosper wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Didn’t Google put a lot of the POI data together themselves? And aren’t there lots of competitors? And nothing but money stopping another player from entering the market?

When Apple Maps got released and everbody made fun of how bad it was, it was revealed that Google Maps had something like 6000 people working on it for years and years, funded through Alphabet corporation's search monopoly and ad revenue. Not the maps ad revenue, that's a pittance. The search revenue. And note that a company that was the world's biggest (or nearly so) at the time failed to catch up, and has still fai…

Google doesn't have a search monopoly.

Re: Google sends anti-regulation propaganda to small businesses using Google Maps

#46

Post by simonh »

yosito wrote: post #29

Google Maps may silently be Alphabet's most powerful property. As someone who has spent the last 8 months religiously degoogling my life, I've found that Google Maps features are incredibly hard to replace, while at the same time, giving Google direct abilities to influence behavior in the physical world. People see it as "just a map", but it's so much more. OSM-based map tools are pretty good as maps, but they utter…

I’ve tried to switch to Apple maps a few times. Most recently was last weekend I used it for navigation directions. The problem this time was on Google maps your route in the display is annotated with small white arrows at the point where you turn off your current road on to a turning or slip road. On Apple maps you don’t get that, you just see a continuous blue curve with no visual indication where the turns are. Back to Google!

Re: Google sends anti-regulation propaganda to small businesses using Google Maps

#47

Post by mariushn »

authed wrote: post #40
mariushn wrote: post #34

Notes on "Now / After" screen: 1. What they don't mention is that first results are usually ads, usually to competition. If you really want to be the first result then your business name is searched, you must pay for an ad too. Just tested this. 2. Hovering over an ad link on Chrome, it shows in bottom bar the link as going to brand.com . How can this be done, it's just an ? Inspecting or right-click shows the true l…

> Hovering over an ad link on Chrome, it shows in bottom bar the link as going to brand.com . How can this be done, it's just an ? Inspecting or right-click shows the true link to www.googleadservices.com/pagead/aclk... Google has been doing this since forever (for any search results too)... They update the link target on-click using javascript to be able to track everything you click on.

Thanks for clarification.

Re: Google sends anti-regulation propaganda to small businesses using Google Maps

#48

Post by mfru »

m4rtink wrote: post #35
yosito wrote: post #29

Google Maps may silently be Alphabet's most powerful property. As someone who has spent the last 8 months religiously degoogling my life, I've found that Google Maps features are incredibly hard to replace, while at the same time, giving Google direct abilities to influence behavior in the physical world. People see it as "just a map", but it's so much more. OSM-based map tools are pretty good as maps, but they utter…

The data directory part of OSM is being improved by an interesting way: https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/StreetComplete Basicaly a gamified editor that makes it easy and fun to fill in opening hours and onther important metadata while on the go. Frankly its almost addictive. :)

Thank you for this!

I try to use OSM as much as possible and this is perfect for me to contribute info on the go from now on.

Re: Google sends anti-regulation propaganda to small businesses using Google Maps

#49

Post by hansel_der »

mariushn wrote: post #34

Notes on "Now / After" screen: 1. What they don't mention is that first results are usually ads, usually to competition. If you really want to be the first result then your business name is searched, you must pay for an ad too. Just tested this. 2. Hovering over an ad link on Chrome, it shows in bottom bar the link as going to brand.com . How can this be done, it's just an ? Inspecting or right-click shows the true l…

on 2: afaik this rewrite of the link target is done throu javascript. it's despicable but apparently the only way for google to count the click.

Re: Google sends anti-regulation propaganda to small businesses using Google Maps

#50

Post by contravariant »

mariushn wrote: post #34

Notes on "Now / After" screen: 1. What they don't mention is that first results are usually ads, usually to competition. If you really want to be the first result then your business name is searched, you must pay for an ad too. Just tested this. 2. Hovering over an ad link on Chrome, it shows in bottom bar the link as going to brand.com . How can this be done, it's just an ? Inspecting or right-click shows the true l…

Am I weird for preferring the "After" screen? It's still got the most relevant result on the top but manages to fit in two other possibly relevant results as well.
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