{"id":8441,"date":"2015-06-29T11:44:54","date_gmt":"2015-06-29T15:44:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.nccomputertech.com\/?p=8441"},"modified":"2015-06-29T11:44:54","modified_gmt":"2015-06-29T15:44:54","slug":"google-harms-users-by-favoring-its-own-services-in-search-results-study-finds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2015\/06\/29\/google-harms-users-by-favoring-its-own-services-in-search-results-study-finds\/","title":{"rendered":"Google harms users by favoring its own services in search results, study finds"},"content":{"rendered":"

Google\u2019s favoring of its own services in search results doesn\u2019t just harm competitors, it also harms consumers, according to research sponsored by a complainant in the EU antitrust trial against the company.<\/p>\n

The study found that users are 45 percent more likely to click on search results organically generated by Google\u2019s own search engine than on results in which Google favors its own services, as it does now.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis suggests that by leveraging dominance in search to promote its internal content, Google is reducing social welfare\u2014leaving consumers with lower quality results and worse matches,\u201d the researchers found. The study \u201cprovides empirical evidence\u201d that Google favoring its own products in some cases harms Google\u2019s users.<\/p>\n

\u201cSuch conduct therefore cannot be described as pro\u00adcompetitive,\u201d said Tim Wu, a professor at Columbia Law School, and Michael Luca, an assistant professor at Harvard Business School.<\/p>\n

Their study was financially supported by Yelp, a site that allows users to review local businesses and one of the complainants fuelling the European Commission\u2019s antitrust investigation into Google\u2019s search practices. Yelp\u2019s data science team also contributed to the research.<\/p>\n

Yelp presented the study during the Antitrust Enforcement Symposium held over the weekend at the University of Oxford in the U.K., a spokeswoman for the university said, and also sent it to the European Commission on Friday. The Commission declined to comment on the study.<\/p>\n

The researchers based their findings on click-surveys of 2,690 users who took part in comparative tests of search result presentation. They showed two versions of search results for local business searches, which according to the study represent roughly one-third of desktop search volume and over one-half of mobile search.<\/p>\n

For local search results, Google currently typically shows a list of seven business pins populated by results from Google\u2019s specialized search services such as Google+ Local and travel in relation to a map, the researchers said. Google calls such blending of results from its own specialized search engines into general search results \u201cuniversal search.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the researchers\u2019 alternative version, a browser plug-in was used to display a map and a list of search results based on Google\u2019s own organic algorithm, including links from third-party review sites such as Yelp and TripAdvisor.<\/p>\n

The test was meant to determine which version delivered the most relevant information for the content in question. It revealed that 32 percent of users would click on Google\u2019s current local results while 47 percent clicked on the alternative search results. This nearly 50 percent increase in click-through rate is an immense difference in the modern Web industry, the researchers said.<\/p>\n

\u201cGoogle appears to be strategically deploying universal search in a way that degrades the product so as to slow and exclude challengers to its dominant search paradigm,\u201d the researchers said.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not all bad, though: There are some instances, such as displaying time or presenting a calculator, where Google favoring its own services does not harm consumers, they found, adding that presenting a calculator on top of a search result page is preferred by users.<\/p>\n

Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The company has always denied that it violates European antitrust rules.<\/p>\n

The Commission opened its antitrust investigation into Google\u2019s search practices in 2010, triggered by complaints from competitors. Google was formally charged with abusing its dominant market position as a search provider in April. The Commission said Google violates European antitrust rules by systematically favoring its own comparison shopping product over competing services, a practice that hurts consumers and stifles competition.<\/p>\n

A redacted version of the charges was sent to Google\u2019s foes earlier this month; they were given four weeks to respond. Meanwhile, Google has still to respond to the Commission\u2019s charges.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the Commission has also started an investigation into Google\u2019s bundling of its apps with the Android OS.<\/p>\n

via Google harms users by favoring its own services in search results, study finds | PCWorld<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Google\u2019s favoring of its own services in search results doesn\u2019t just harm competitors, it also harms consumers, according to research […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[10],"tags":[424,946],"class_list":["post-8441","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-technology","tag-google","tag-search-practices"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/papNkV-2c9","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":9385,"url":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2018\/07\/23\/this-week-in-tech-676-falling-asleep-as-the-robots-wake-up\/","url_meta":{"origin":8441,"position":0},"title":"This Week in Tech 676: Falling Asleep as the Robots Wake Up","author":"NCCT","date":"July 23, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"https:\/\/youtu.be\/uV5cQYtuJjU This Week in Tech - The future is flying cars! (Or not-flying cars, perhaps holes in the ground.) - Apple's new MacBooks suffering from thermal throttling - is it the end for Intel? - Google hit with $5 billion fine by EU for Android shenanigans. - Will Fuschia be\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Apple"","block_context":{"text":"Apple","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/category\/apple\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/uV5cQYtuJjU\/0.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":9477,"url":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2018\/12\/16\/the-big-leek-cabal-this-week-in-tech-697\/","url_meta":{"origin":8441,"position":1},"title":"The Big Leek Cabal – This Week in Tech 697","author":"NCCT","date":"December 16, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"https:\/\/youtu.be\/4JZfm6VIBfc - Elon Musk is a terrible person to work for. - The internet is a garbage fire of hate. - It is not Google's fault that searching for \"idiot\" results in pictures of Donald Trump. - The Chinese are not spying on you with secret spy chips on Super\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Technology"","block_context":{"text":"Technology","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/category\/technology\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/4JZfm6VIBfc\/0.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":9938,"url":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2025\/05\/16\/google-antitrust-ruling-breakdown-what-this-means-for-chrome-and-search\/","url_meta":{"origin":8441,"position":2},"title":"Google Antitrust Ruling Breakdown – What This Means for Chrome and Search","author":"NCCT","date":"May 16, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"https:\/\/youtu.be\/ELXjmrnN1uM The panel breaks down the antitrust ruling that could force Google to sell Chrome, stop paying Apple billions for default search placement, and fundamentally reshape the internet. 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