Google: Building a Bridge to the Middle Kingdom with an App
November 1, 2018
Years after Google told China the country had to change, Google is working overtime to build a bridge to the Middle Kingdom. Teamed with JD.com, Google hopes to knock off Amazon. (Anyone remember Froogle? Google may not.)
But the earthmoving equipment Google wants to drive into China is its vaunted search technology. From our vantage point in rural Kentucky, it seems as if Google will toss out comprehensive search results to win friends in China. Business Insider shares that, “Google Reportedly Wants To Launch Search Engine In China After Sundar Pichai Held Secret Government Meeting.”
Google is not the money winner Google wants. That has to change.
Google China used to be housed in Beijing, but the search engine packed its bags and headed to Hong Kong in 2010. It is revealed that CEO Sundar Pichai met with the Chinese government in December 2017 in hopes to re-enter mainland China. The Intercept leaked the report and shared that Google is willing to build a search engine, albeit a censored search engine to comply with strict Chinese censorship laws:
“According to the report, the project is codenamed “Dragonfly”, and engineers have created a custom Android app variously nicknamed “Maotai” and “Longfei.” The app was demonstrated to Chinese officials, and a final version could launch within the next six to nine months, but will hide terms about human rights, democracy, religion, and peaceful protest. It would also block sites like the BBC and Wikipedia. The Chinese government is yet to give final approval, The Intercept said.”
Google already provides many services to Chinese users, and the company seems to be moving forward.
Perhaps the past is the past? Well, maybe at Google. China is into its past, and it takes a long view.
The new approach will be a software wrapper (called an “app” to use today’s broster jargon). The app will work with an algorithm embedded in image, spell check, and suggested search, so Google cannot send people to otherwise censored material. Google would also work with a local service partner. We wonder if that partner is linked to Chinese authorities. Hey, that’s a negative question. Skip it.
Whitney Grace, November 1, 2018
We Are from Google. We Are Here to Help You
October 30, 2018
Using Google for business has become an unavoidable part of the workday, no matter what industry you are in. However, this runs the risk of your research becoming too sterile and similar to competitors. Or so we are told. We learned more about how this obstacle is being overcome in a recent Maria Johnsen piece, “AI Search Engine in the Age of Intelligent Web 3.0.”
According to the story:
“The introduction of Google Rankbrain has empowered businesses to leave the realm of following Google’s lead while being able to dictate their personal moves. Google applied machine learning AI to empower their algorithm with heightened efficiency and to propel it in line with its goal. the secret of a fantastic search engine is having a mapped out mission that one will be able to advance towards while avoiding confusing information that causes deviation from the mission.”
This is no small news bite. Outlets around the Web are praising the oft-criticized Google for this move. In fact, some are calling it the best thing to happen to SEO in a long time. By helping rank pages that show up, the feel of a personally tailored search has the high potential to make all businesses take notice.
But there is more.
You can get verified by Google. Navigate to this link and start the process.
Patrick Roland, October 30, 2018
Google and India: A Bit of Tension
October 29, 2018
India is not happy with Google and you can be sure that everyone’s auntie knows about it. It is never good to anger one of the most populous countries in the world, but Google has certainly upset China and now India. India is angry, because of user privacy issues. Trak shares the story, “Paytm Declares War Against Google; Accuses Them Of Sharing Users’ Payment Data.”
Paytm is India’s largest digital wallet. India is currently in a technological and economic war as Paytm and Google Pay for to be the country’s most popular digital wallet. Paytm now has a surefire weapon against Google. What is it? Google is sharing user data with third parties and it discredits Google Pay’s secure payment claims.
“In an interesting move, Paytm has contact NPCI, the nodal agency which foresees all digital payments in India, and have complained that Google Pay is sharing users’ payment related data with other entities…In a letter addressed to NPCI chief executive Dilip Asbe, Paytm said, ‘Google Pay, which is an unregulated platform, has the scope of using their customers’ data for their monetary gains with complete disregard for the users’ need for privacy,’ Google had recently changed the name of Google Tez to Google Pay, as they plan a major expansion in India. Thus, Google Pay is directly pitched against Paytm in the niche.”
India is not the only country where Google is going to face repercussions of selling user data. Europe is going to team up and probably slap the company with a heavy lawsuit. Perhaps Google with curry favor with this fast growing market?
Whitney Grace, October 29, 2018
Google Becomes an App Machine
October 28, 2018
Google looks for ways to better the search experience and according to Reuters they might have a new way to search: “Google’s ‘Reserve’ Tool Winning Converts, Taking Search To Next Level.” And ads are important too. Right, Mr. Reuters?
Google’s newest project is the Reserve app that had a quiet launch this year. Reserve users have lauded its ease of use and sparing them a phone call. What is Reserve? It is a search app that is a cross between Yelp and Google Maps. For example, if you want a massage at 6:00 PM near your work, you input your search terms into Reserve, and it returns massage studios near you with available appointments. It even allows you to pay and book an appointment without ever having to speak with a person.
Business participants are happy, because it is driving new customers to them and the customers are happy with the ease of use. What would this mean for Google?
“The early results are a good sign for Google’s strategy for search at a time when it is battling technology rivals to guide consumers to shops, products, recipes, music and more. Google wants to do more than supply users with a list of web pages that they must research themselves. The next step is to complete tasks for them and provide direct solutions.”
Google Assistant will become a bigger feature in Reserve as the app faces upgrades. Google Assistant will take over the booking from the users with a simple vocal command. The market for appointment booking is brand new, but also hot for consumer brand development and competition.
Google is not currently charging any of the businesses listed in Reserve a fee, but in the future it could offer advertising packages to businesses who want an ad featured in Reserve or even charge for inclusion in the search results. There is concern that Google is watering down consumer and business relationships in an effort to capture data, but this is also how the market is shifting.
Amazon Home Services and Yelp are also working on their own booking services, but these projects are still in the development phases. Google’s Reserve is just a search tool masked in an app interface, but it does take out the guesswork.
Whitney Grace, October 28, 2018
Google Maps: Unusable?
October 28, 2018
I read “Google Maps Has Become a Big Bloated Mess of Features Nobody Wants.” I learned from a source far from the old age home that Google Maps is a chubby piggy. No 5J. Just a big pig.
I highlighted this statement:
Correct me if I’m wrong and you do use all of Google Maps’ new features or find them practical, but I open up the app and am annoyed on the daily about what exactly I’m supposed to be doing in it.
About right. The Google Plus method applied to Google Maps.
Stephen E Arnold, October 28, 2018
Google and Popular Searches
October 26, 2018
Why the intellectual bar for online information retrieval is getting lower is revealed in the article “Happy 20th Birthday, Google: What Are the Most Popular Searches?”
Online searching once was the realm of individuals who sought information via Texas Instruments Silent 700s. No more.
To illustrate the type of information that is important to Google and its users, here are the top searches from each of the last five years:
- 2017 Hurricane Irma
- 2016 Powerball
- 2015 Lamar Odom
- 2014 Robin Williams
- 2013 Paul Walker
This list makes clear why Google suggests popular rock stars, pizza, and pizza (oh, did I mention pizza already?).
Google is a wonderful tool. Here in Harrod’s Creek we want weather, gambling, and celebrity or at least C list celebrity information.
I think Alexis de Tocqueville said:
In the United States, the majority undertakes to supply a multitude of ready made opinions for the use of individuals, who are thus relieved from the necessity of forming opinions of their own.
In search, that majority seems to be Google.
October 26, 2018
Mapping a Brain without the Treo Founder
October 26, 2018
Remember the Treo. The wizard behind the device has been studying the brain. Jeff Hawkins is beginning to share his findings.
It’s a well-worn joke that things like Google and Facebook impact the ways our brains work. Some might even say our brains wouldn’t function without it. Now, scientists are striving to make that connection even tighter, but in a surprising way. We learned more from a Datanami story: “Partners Look to Scale ‘Chomsky Knowledge Graph’”.
According to the piece, computer scientists are testing out a knowledge mapping tool on the work of social critic Noam Chomsky. Here’s where it gets interesting:
“The initiative builds on Google’s (NASDAQ: GOOGL) pioneering work that used a graph database to organize information and link it to related web sites and sources. Built on top of the graph database, the knowledge graph transformed search from “strings” of key words to “things,” or concepts based on context.”
Why wait for Mr. Hawkins.
By using Google for this project, it’s tough not to assume that Google has the brain under glass. With the news that Google, itself, has been attempting to map the human brain’s neurons, it seems like a natural fit that the two would find an eventual overlap.
Perhaps online ads delivered directly into the brain? We like the idea. We like the idea. We like the idea. Oh, that’s Ikea.
Patrick Roland, October 26, 2018
Online Ad Fraud! Who Knew?
October 24, 2018
I read “Apps Installed On Millions Of Android Phones Tracked User Behavior To Execute A Multimillion-Dollar Ad Fraud Scheme.” Goodness, first my faith in Facebook’s data about video ad performance was eroded a tiny bit. Now there are allegations about Android app ad fraud. The write up uses the word “cabal.”
The online advertising business, in my opinion, has been a bastion of integrity. Sure, there were baseless assertions about robot clickers which depleted a competitor’s online ad checkbook. There were squishy numbers about the number of human eyeballs versus crawler clicks. And there were ads for interesting products and services which online ad vendors suggested were real, true blue commercial messages.
Yes, integrity. Online advertising. Bound at the hip.
But there is this write up in Buzzfeed which states:
But an investigation by BuzzFeed News reveals that these seemingly separate apps and companies are today part of a massive, sophisticated digital advertising fraud scheme involving more than 125 Android apps and websites connected to a network of front and shell companies in Cyprus, Malta, British Virgin Islands, Croatia, Bulgaria, and elsewhere. More than a dozen of the affected apps are targeted at kids or teens, and a person involved in the scheme estimates it has stolen hundreds of millions of dollars from brands whose ads were shown to bots instead of actual humans.
I know that it takes smart filters to verify apps in crime free locations like Cyprus, Malta, and Bulgaria. And the British Virgin Islands? Unthinkable.
But the article presents some data which suggest that a modest amount of money is in play; to wit:
App metrics firm AppsFlyer estimated that between $700 million and $800 million was stolen from mobile apps alone in the first quarter of this year, a 30% increase over the previous year. Pixalate’s latest analysis of in-app fraud found that 23% of all ad impressions in mobile apps are in some way fraudulent. Overall, Juniper Research estimates $19 billion will be stolen this year by digital ad fraudsters, but others believe the actual figure could be three times that.
Google, of course, was quick to take action. Google cares.
I am disappointed that this infinitesimal aberrations in an integrity filled business have been reported as “true” fact.
More data are needed, please. I know that Facebook and Google can explain this misguided assertion.
My goodness, manipulation of online advertising. Shocking. Shocking.
Stephen E Arnold, October 24, 2018
Google Plus: A Moment of Contemplation and Reflection
October 24, 2018
If you miss Google Plus, you will want to read “Goodbye, Google+: A Eulogy for the Last Great Social Network.”
Here’s my favorite part of the write up:
Over its 20-year history, Google has succeeded wildly with products in a great many businesses: Search, Gmail, YouTube, Android and others. But it tends to fail with products that involve public social interaction. In fact, it’s earned a reputation as something of a social site serial killer. High-profile failures include Orkut, Buzz, and Wave. But even more obscure social properties also got “sunsetted” by Google: Spaces, Profiles, Wildfire, Jaiku, Schemer, Lively, Hello, Dodgeball, Aardvark, Friend Connect, Latitude, Talk, Helpouts and others.
Hell-pouts? Hmm.
The write up finds much to like in Google Plus. Obviously the author was in the minority because Facebook remained unphased by Google Plus. With lots of Xooglers working at Facebook, why worry? These sneaker wearers knew what “putting wood behind Google Plus” really meant I hypothesize.
The main point of the write up is that Google Plus was super in 2014. As each year tumbled by, the meh factor increased.
So, Google Plus? Meh, who cares.
Stephen E Arnold, October 24, 2018
Which Is the Winner: Google Speech or Amazon Transcribe?
October 22, 2018
The answer appears in a write up called “Google Speech Vs Amazon Transcribe: The War Of Speech Technology.” Spoiler: It looks like Google stomps Amazon in this remarkable analysis.
When it comes to languages supported, Google is king; 119 to Amazon’s paltry dozen or so.
Which system does better with long talking, it is a tie. Two hours is the audio limit. But the write up does not explain if the two hours are chunked or if multiple two hour blocks can be strung together. Important information excluded or ignored in this head to head analysis.
Programming languages? Looks like a toss up. But Amazon supports Dot Net, which may be important at clients like the US Department of Defense.
Privacy? Yeah, well, not much information. The write up ignores Amazon’s federation capabilities and its cross correlation analytics. And Google? Yeah, advertising. We know what that means.
Audio formats? Google seems to cover the bases. The write up ignores the Amazon APIs, which is not surprising because none of Amazon’s law enforcement and policeware capabilities seem to have hit the author’s radar.
Vocabulary? Well, if Google supports more languages, whatever vocabulary tweaking it permits will crush Amazon’s capabilities.
Additional features? Google can do emotions. Right, Alexa cannot it seems. The Beyond Search goose thinks the author should check into Alexa’s capabilities with regard to Amazon Sagemaker. Just a thought: You, gentle reader, may want to check this out as well.
Wrap up?
Both are equal. But the way the write up presents information, Google is the implicit winner.
The Beyond Search goose happens to disagree. What are those Alexa enabled gizmos doing? Interesting question which this Analytics India article does not address.
Stephen E Arnold, October 22, 2018
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