Google’s $312 Million Joke

It appears that, a week later, eBay has not restored its ads to Google Search. eBay famously pulled the ads last week in response to Google’s Let Freedom Ring party, which Google cancelled in backing down. It appears they have not restored the ads, which will mean a noticeable hit to Google’s bottom line. Reportedly, eBay buys $26 million a month in AdWords ads, which would translate to a loss to Google of about $312 million a year.
As a Google user, I’m glad to see the ads go. eBay used Automatic Keyword Insertion to include ads on a huge number of search terms that were irrelevant and sometimes offensive. eBay would offer great deals on racism, let you buy babies, tried to sell skin cancer, and in one classic post, advertised for “nigga”, “homeless people”, “honky”, “poo”, “crap”, “pee”, and “sisters”.
Should Google fire the person […]

Original post by Nathan Weinberg