Google Cracking Down on Advertising Fraud

source: Google Cracking Down on Advertising Fraud | Michelman & Robinson, LLP - JDSupra

Google is cracking down on domains that falsely represent advertising inventory with its Ad Traffic Quality Team, currently showcasing a filtering tool—DoubleClick Bid Manager (DBM)—that detects when publishers are trying to trick advertisers.

Copyright, Google: Digitize Millions of Books is Fair Use

Recent decision handed down by the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit found that Google’s scanning of copyrighted books as part of its Library Project amounted to “fair use” and did not violate federal copyright law.--



Source: Google’s Effort to Digitize Millions of Books is Fair Use | Wendel, Rosen, Black & Dean LLP - JDSupra

Class Certification for Class Of Google Advertisers, Ninth Circuit

source: Ninth Circuit Holds District Court Erred In Denying Certification To Class Of Google Advertisers | Carlton Fields Jorden Burt - JDSupra

Google vs Local Lighthouse Corp, Trademarks, False Advertising

Google v. Local Lighthouse Corp: "Google v. Local Lighthouse Corp Filed September 16, 2015
Northern California District Court Docket 3:15-cv-04219"

re: Google vs Local Lighthouse Corp, Trademarks, False Advertising

Google v. Local Lighthouse Corp by LJ's infoDOCKET

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The Internet and Google’s New Logo

source: Internet Loses it Over Google’s New Logo | Winthrop & Weinstine, P.A. - JDSupra

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Google's Sidewalk Labs: Using Technology to Improve Urban Life, Cities

"Sidewalk will focus on improving city life for everyone by developing and incubating urban technologies to address issues like cost of living, efficient transportation and energy usage."--Larry Page, Google

Google is now taking aim at fixing another major problem: city life. A new initiative, called Sidewalk Labs, will use technology and innovation in an effort to improve urban life at a time when the U.S. population is gravitating to cities, according to Google CEO Larry Page. Based in New York, it will be run by Dan Doctoroff, a former deputy mayor of New York City who will combine his experience in managing cities with funding from Google... [Larry Page] described Google's investment as "relatively modest." He did not disclose the amount, but compared Sidewalk Labs to Google X, Google's research lab, and Calico, a Google-funded company that is researching health and aging. "Making long-term, 10X bets like this is hard for most companies to do, but (Google co-founder) Sergey (Brin) and I have always believed that it's important," Page wrote. In a statement, Doctoroff said: "We are at the beginning of a historic transformation in cities. At a time when the concerns about urban equity, costs, health and the environment are intensifying, unprecedented technological change is going to enable cities to be more efficient, responsive, flexible and resilient." Read more at: Google launches Sidewalk Labs to fix cities (USA Today)

Domain name: sidewalkinc.com

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That Google Image Search Could Result in Copyright Trouble

That Google Image Search Could Result in Copyright Trouble 
source: Winthrop & Weinstine, P.A. - JDSupra

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Obama Administration Tells Supreme Court to Kill Innovation

“The [trial] court’s decision upholds the principle that open and interoperable computer languages form an essential basis for software development. It’s a good day for collaboration and innovation,” said a Google spokesman, May 31, 2012

Fast forward to May 26, 2015:

Justice tells Supreme Court not to hear Google's API appeal - Fortune: "A Google spokesperson issued the following statement: “We appreciate the Solicitor General’s careful review of this issue, however we’re disappointed with these conclusions. We still look forward to defending the concepts of interoperability that have traditionally contributed to innovation in the software industry.”"

This is the Obama administration's "advice" to the US Supreme Court on APIs and Copyright:
Obama Administration Tells Supreme Court to Kill Innovation--Copyright, APIs, Google, Oracle, Java

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Website Mobile-friendly, Google Ranking Factor

Coming soon: Your website's mobile-friendliness will be a ranking factor | Custom Legal Marketing - JDSupra:

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Google Q4 2014 Earnings Call video

Google Q4 2014 Earnings Call - Published on Jan 29, 2015

Earnings Slides [PDF 603k]

Google Inc. Announces Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2014 Results – Investor Relations – Google: "MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. – January 29, 2015 -  Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG, GOOGL) today announced financial results for the quarter and fiscal year ended December 31, 2014. “Google’s full year revenue for 2014 was $66 billion, up 19% year on year,” said Patrick Pichette, CFO of Google, “and this quarter, our revenue was $18.1 billion, despite strong currency headwinds.”" (read more at the link above)

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Is Your Website Mobile-Friendly? The Google Guide

We [Google] are also experimenting with using the mobile-friendly criteria as a ranking signal" (source infra)

Google Webmaster: Helping users find mobile-friendly pages: "A page is eligible for the “mobile-friendly” label if it meets the following criteria as detected by Googlebot:

• Avoids software that is not common on mobile devices, like Flash
• Uses text that is readable without zooming
• Sizes content to the screen so users don't have to scroll horizontally or zoom
• Places links far enough apart so that the correct one can be easily tapped

If you want to make sure that your page meets the mobile-friendly criteria check your pages with the Mobile-Friendly Test

Read Webmasters Mobile Guide on how to create and improve your mobile-friendly site

See the Mobile usability report in Google Webmaster Tools, which highlights major mobile usability issues across your entire site, not just one page

Check out how-to guide for third-party software like WordPress or Joomla, in order to migrate your website hosted on a CMS (Content Management System) to use a mobile-friendly template

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Google and Project Loon, Internet Service via Balloons (video)

Project Loon: The Technology -

Google believes it's possible to create a ring of balloons that fly around the globe on the stratospheric winds and provide Internet access to the earth below. Balloons present some really hard science problems, but Google is excited about the progress so far.

Read more:

Google's Project Loon can now launch up to 20 balloons per day, and they fly 10 times longer than in 2013 | VentureBeat | Business | by Emil Protalinski: "In terms of quality improvements, the balloons now last 10 times longer in the stratosphere than they did in 2013. Some fly for over 100 days (Google says the current record is 130 days)."

3 million kilometers is a long journey. That distance would take you around the…: "..."It’s one thing for our balloons to last longer, but to build a ring of connectivity around the world we’ll also need to get more in the air. Imagine how long it would take you and your friends to inflate 7,000 party balloons. That’s what it takes to fill just one of our Loon balloons for flight, so we’ve developed autofill equipment that will be capable of doing it in under 5 minutes. We now have the ability to launch up to 20 balloons per day as we continue to improve our ability to launch consistently at scale."..."--Google Project Loon

google.com/loon/

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Search Results, Free Speech, Google Uses Anti-SLAPP Statute

Take note website publishers, bloggers, and business developers: Google's Search Results are Free Speech, protected by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution--at least in the US. Elsewhere in the world, it depends on each nation's laws. Further reading below--

Google has free speech right in search results, court confirms — Tech News and Analysis: "The new ruling, which is the first since 2007 to address Google’s rights under the First Amendment, came after a website called CoastNews argued that Google had unfairly pushed it far down in its search results – even though, CoastNews claimed, its site appeared at the top of results created by Bing and Yahoo. CoastNews suggested the poor rankings were because Google wanted to eliminate CoastNews as a potential competitor. Google responded by filing an “anti-SLAPP” motion, a legal tactic used to quickly challenge lawsuits that seek to stifle free speech. In a one-paragraph ruling, Judge Ernest Goldsmith granted the request, saying CoastNews’ claims against Google related to “constitutionally protected activity.”"

Responding to Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) | Digital Media Law Project: "SLAPP stands for "Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation." It refers to a lawsuit filed in retaliation for speaking out on a public issue or controversy. You might be "SLAPPed" for actions such as posting a blog entry, posting a comment on another person's blog, writing a letter to the editor of a newspaper, testifying before the legislature, reporting official misconduct, or circulating a petition. Often, SLAPPs are brought by corporations, developers, or government officials against individuals or community organizations that oppose their actions...."

Anti-SLAPP Law in California | Digital Media Law Project: "You can use California's anti-SLAPP statute to counter a SLAPP suit filed against you. The statute allows you to file a special motion to strike a complaint filed against you based on an "act in furtherance of [your] right of petition or free speech under the United States or California Constitution in connection with a public issue." Cal. Civ. Proc. Code § 425.16. If a court rules in your favor, it will dismiss the plaintiff's case early in the litigation and award you attorneys' fees and court costs.  In addition, if a party to a SLAPP suit seeks your personal identifying information, California law allows you to make a motion to quash the discovery order, request, or subpoena...."

Google SLAPP Suit

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Airbus Drone Is Years Ahead of Google and Facebook for Delivering Internet Service (video)

See the Drone That Is Years Ahead of Google and Facebook -

Satellites are so 2014. Airbus is developing a high-altitude, solar-powered drone that can stay aloft indefinitely. It could deliver wireless service where towers are too hard or expensive to maintain. Sam Grobart reports for Bloomberg's "The Year Ahead: 2015 " series. (Source: Bloomberg Nov12)

ref. airbus.com
google.com
facebook.com

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Domain Names, Trademarks, Elliot vs Google, Decision, Order, Analysis

How to lose your domain names (and $$ invested) real fast--UDRP followed by Court decision--

"During a two-week period ending on March 10, 2012, Plaintiffs used a domain name registrar to acquire 763 domain names that combined the word “google” with another brand" (from Court Memorandum below)

Elliot v. Google: Memorandum of Decision and Order (see further below for analysis):

Google successfully defended its trademark of the word Google against two Arizona plaintiffs who argued that "google" had become a generic verb and asserted, inter alia, that the GOOGLE mark has become generic. Legal Analysis below:

Use as a verb not always the kiss of death for trademarks: Elliot v. Google | Lewis Roca Rothgerber - JDSupra:

Further reading:
Google Fights Genericide Claim (and Wins)
List of generic and genericized trademarks - Wikipedia

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Peter Thiel: Google More Dominant Than Facebook, Apple, Amazon (video)

Peter Thiel: Google More Dominant Than Facebook, Apple -

Peter Thiel discusses Google, Facebook, Apple, and Amazon. He speaks with Bloomberg's Emily Chang on "Studio 1.0." He says Google is more dominant due to its core search technology. (Source: Bloomberg-Sep 17, 2014)

Peter Thiel - Wikipedia: ".. (born October 11, 1967) is an American entrepreneur, venture capitalist, and hedge fund manager. Thiel cofounded PayPal with Max Levchin and Elon Musk and served as its CEO. He also cofounded Palantir, of which he is chairman. He serves as president of Clarium Capital, a global macro hedge fund with $700 million in assets under management; a managing partner in Founders Fund, a venture capital fund with $2 billion in assets under management; and cofounder and investment committee chair of Mithril Capital Management. He was the first outside investor in Facebook, the popular social-networking site, with a 10.2% stake acquired in 2004 for $500,000, and sits on the company's board of directors. Thiel was ranked #293 on the Forbes 400 in 2011, with a net worth of $1.5 billion as of March 2012... Thiel lives in San Francisco, California..."

"Google has a huge new moat. In fact, I've probably never seen such a wide moat."
 - Charlie Munger, 2009

10 Years Of Google And The Importance Of Long-Term Thinking - Google Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) | Seeking Alpha: " Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL) celebrated the 10-year anniversary of its IPO last week."

Domain Names of Companies referenced:
amazon.com
apple.com
facebook.com
google.com
mithril.com
clarium.com
foundersfund.com
paypal.com
palantir.com

see also: 
Google Domains -- Google's Domain Name Registrar
Google Registry -- Google's new gTLDs Registry

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Remember the Groupon $6 Billion Brushoff of Google

The legacy of groupon.com for all start-ups--avoid self-delusions--"Emerging from that process, it felt like a butterfly emerging from the cocoon.We went through a period of introspection and self-doubt, and then ultimately emerged in a state of supreme confidence. Like, OK, we're the best company in the world."--former Groupon CEO Andrew Mason (source)

Rubes, Inexperience, Hubris?--when you are a start-up, before you reject a multi-billion dollar offer from the likes of Google, it's time to put the egos down, and use your rational brains--

Behind Groupon's $6 Billion Brushoff of Google - WSJ: "...In the fall of 2010, search giant Google offered nearly $6 billion to buy Groupon [groupon.com]... the daily-deals site..." (read more at the foregoing link)

So where is Groupon today?

Groupon disappoints on weak Q2 revenue of $751.6M, investors quickly send it packing | VentureBeat | Business: "Before the bell, Groupon stock was slightly up by less than one percent. In after hours trading, the company is down a whopping 17 percent."

Total market cap today? Only $4.82 billion--about a billion dollars less than what Google would have paid in 2010!

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Google Profit Beats on Unexpected Ad Sales Gain (video)

Google Profit Beats on Unexpected Ad Sales Gain: Video - Bloomberg:
(Allow video to load after clicking play or go to link above)
Bloomberg’s Caroline Hyde breaks down second-quarter results from Google as ad sales grew and how the company will deal with the loss of Chief Business Officer Nikesh Arora. She speaks on “On The Move.”(July 18 - Bloomberg)

More info on Google 2Q 2014 results and Google info: go to Google including Registry and Registrar links - Google Registry, Google Registrar (Google Domains)

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Google LIVE Presentation Wednesday on New gTLD Domain Names

While ICANN 50, now ongoing in London, appears to be drowning in dysfunction -- the real action this week is across the pond, specifically in San Francisco and Mountain View:

Google presentation on New gTLDs -- Who Cares About New Domain Names? --streamed LIVE* from Google I/O in San Francisco: Wednesday, June 25 1:00 PM - 1:45 PM (Pacific Time US): "The first new generic top-level domains are coming online, from .photography to .みんな. Who cares, you say? We do. We’ll tell you how the explosion of new domain names means cool things for the future of the web. But it isn’t all sunshine and rainbows. New domain names also mean new challenges for all of us. In fact, they’re probably already breaking your products. Join us to find out what’s happening, get a glimpse at what’s coming, and learn what we all need to do now to prepare."

Speakers: 
Ben Fried - Vice President and Chief Information Officer, Google 
Corey Goldfeder - Google engineer on the Domain Registry team in NYC
Kripa Krishnan - Technical Program Director at Google and works on the new gTLDs launch and acceptance program

*If you can't watch live, you can see YouTube recordings of all Google I/O sessions after the conference.

Meanwhile, Google as Domain Registrar has launched in beta: Google Domains. Why Google decided to get into the Domain Registrar business was explained in a Google+ post:

"Starting to test Google Domains It's 2014 " . . .  55% of small businesses still don't have [a website]. So as we explore ways to help small businesses succeed online (through tools like Google My Business, we thought it made sense to look more closely at the starting point of every business’s online presence - a website. And that starts with a domain name. We’re beginning to invite a small number of people to kick the tires on Google Domains, a domain registration service we’re in the process of building. Businesses will be able to search, find, purchase and transfer the best domain for their business - whether it’s .com, .biz, .org, or any of the wide range of new domains that are being released to the Web...We also want to make sure our customer support and infrastructure works flawlessly, and that we have the right additional services (like mobile website creation tools and hosting services from a range of providers, as well as domain management support)... our goal is to make Google Domains more widely available soon ..." (emphasis added)

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Google Is an Advertising Company, Search Myth Busted

Google 2013 Revenues:  Advertising: 91%  Other: 9%

The Google 2013 Form 10-K says it all:

Google Segment Revenues by Percentages

Google Segment Revenues by Revenue Source 

"Google is not a search company, nor they are a smartphone company - they are an advertising company and there is no way around it." -- Seeking Alpha

Google provides services, including search, upon which it can place advertising. For that reason, most Google services are free to the user. The monetization model for most Google services therefore is based upon advertising revenues.

Search Myth Busted: "Consumers aren't just searching via Google. In fact, YouTube is the second largest search engine. Meanwhile, Twitter gets about 32 billion search queries per month, which is more than Bing and Yahoo combined."

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