From: mike 


http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2007/04/25/MNGELPF0DR1.DTL&
type=tech

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It's official: Google rules the world.

The Mountain View search engine has outstripped Microsoft on two fronts,
becoming both the most visited Web site and the most valuable global brand.

The events are major milestones for Google, which has grown into a business
juggernaut. Torrid growth and outsized profits have quickly propelled the
company past many established blue chip giants while generating a host of
complaints that it has become too powerful.

"These are really significant events," said Geoffrey Bowker,
executive director of the Center for Science, Technology and Society at
Santa Clara University. "At the moment, everything that Google is
touching turns to gold."

For the first time, Google has edged ahead of Microsoft as the world's most
visited Internet property. Online measurement firm comScore Networks found
that Google had just over a million more unique users in March than its
arch-rival.

Google had 528 million unique visitors in March, up 5 percent from the
previous month, according to comScore. Microsoft had 527 million visitors
during the same month, up 3.7 percent.

Popular in the United States, Google is even more of a powerhouse in many
European countries.

In a statement, Google said: "Our goal has always been to provide the
best online experience for our users. We build products based on user needs
and input, which is part of what makes Google unique and results in a great
online experience."

Microsoft declined to comment.

Until the latest rankings, Microsoft was the most popular Web property in
every month since comScore began tracking global numbers in January 2006.
And given the growth trends, Microsoft was undoubtedly No. 1 long before
the survey was started, according to Bob Ivins, executive vice president
for comScore.

Google inched ahead based on its phenomenal popularity, not only in its
core search business but also its e-mail service, online maps and
personalized home pages. The recent acquisition of video site YouTube, for
$1.65 billion, also has boosted Google's count of unique visitors.

In comparison, Microsoft's growth has been sluggish in recent years. It
simply hasn't been adding users fast enough to keep up.

In the latest figures, Google's lead is little more than a statistical
hair. But given the company's momentum, Google is likely to widen the gap,
at least in the short term, Ivins said.

ComScore's estimates are based on tracking 2 million Internet users across
the globe, from home and work (but not from Internet cafes or schools).
Only users 15 and older are factored into calculations.

"Unique" visitors are a key measurement in the Internet industry,
showing how many individuals visited a particular Web site in a given
month. Users are counted only once, even those who may visit a site
multiple times during the period.

Unique users, however, isn't the only statistic that matters online. For
example, Google still trails in the amount of time global users spend on
its properties: an average of 4.6 minutes compared to 12.8 minutes on
Microsoft.

Separately, Google was named the most powerful brand in 2007 in an annual
survey released Monday by Millward Brown, a British market research
company. The company's brand was valued at $66.4 billion, ahead of GE,
Microsoft and Coca-Cola.

The study measures the potential earnings of a brand and loyalty. Physical
property, such as factories and real estate, weren't included.

In the survey, Google's ranking jumped to the top spot from No. 7 a year
ago, based on a 77 percent increase in the value of its brand. Microsoft,
which led the survey in 2006, tumbled because of an 11 percent drop in the
perceived value of its brand.

Despite Google's current strength, Bowker, from Santa Clara University,
emphasized that Google's winning streak isn't guaranteed in the future. He
recalled a number of companies that once seemed invincible later faltered,
including IBM and General Motors.

Google, in particular, faces a number of risks, ranging from a lawsuit by
Viacom over copyright infringement on YouTube to political uproar over
censoring search results in China.

"It's an uncertain time," Bowker said. "Just because you
pass a milestone and everything is going so swimmingly doesn't mean you
can't crash and burn."
Google milestones

Web's most-visited properties

In March, Google edged Microsoft for the first time in the number of unique visitors:

1. Google ... 528 million
2. Microsoft ... 527 million
3. Yahoo ... 476 million
4. Time Warner ... 272 million
5. eBay ... 256 million

Source: comScore Networks


World's most-valuable brands

Study measures the potential earnings of a brand and loyalty. Physical
property is not included.

1. Google ... $66.4 billion
2. GE ... $61.9 billion
3. Microsoft ... $55 billion
4. Coca-Cola ... $44.1 billion
5. China Mobile $41.2 billion

Source: Millward Brown Optimor
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It's obvious that Microsoft needs to innovate harder.  Maybe a patent on
the *nix ls command....

 /m

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