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Google Paying for Firefox Installs
slashkitty writes "Google updated their AdSense service to pay publishers for referrals. What's interesting is that now they pay publishers $1 US for each FireFox download with the Google Toolbar installed. Is this the bump that Firefox needs to boost downloads? Will Google be able to pay the millions for all the downloads?"
Google has, what, three billion dollars in cash?
Will Google be able to pay the millions for all the downloads?
Don't you think it's a bit too optimistic to expect "millions of downloads"?
Man is a slave because freedom is difficult, whereas slavery is easy.
I'm sure Google is completely innocent of spyware, but I'm resisting installing the Google toolbar in Firefox, or IE. There's already a Google search bar in Firefox, and I've been anti-addon-toolbar for years now, since every unstable system I've worked on had at least one of them. When the great Google Toolbar Trap is sprung, I'll be on the outside of the box, thank you very much.
Saskboy's blog is good. 9 out of 10 dentists agree.
Will Google be able to pay all those million? Get a grip! They've been paying millions for all those open-source programmers that are working on Open Office and other programs.
They want to hurt Micro$oft, and paying a couple of hundred million to make Firefox hit critical mass is just small change to a company with a few billion to spread around.
When Firefox DOES hit critical mass, which means that web developers HAVE to create web apps that render/function correctly in Firefox, people will have less reason to stick with IE, adding more impetous to the Firefox migration, and weakening the MS lock-in on the web.
HexaByte - he's a square and a half!
This is pretty good move from google. They know it is not possible to bundle with IE. The next best is to push with other alternative that is firefox. The advantage for google is to tap potential customers(?) who use Mac OS or Linux or Windows.
Now, I agree with those people who think Google is basically a good company. However I also think one of the major reasons they are doing this is because Google want to make sure that Firefox's taking over from IE continues, as based on past experience, if Microsoft can keep IE in a monopoly position, it's only a matter of time until various bits of Google start getting "accidentially broken" during IE service packs. Also spreading firefox stops an increase in IE-only websites.
:)
So in conclusion, Firefox gets some more installs, Google gets some more google toolbar installs, lots of websites gain "install firefox" links, IE loses a bit more market share and Google loses a bit of spare change. Everyone wins, except those people we don't like
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1$ is a small price to pay to spread their wings like this. Google has the branding for their website, of which google has become a household term in the American language. They support IE for its massive install base, but I think its pretty clear Google wants its own software, and who can blame them!
/. talk about how Linux is "oh so close", and has been for years. In that time, I've been a linux supporter, I have a linux machine -- but now all my machines look more like Google machines than Linux or Windows. See the comparison here too with iPod/iTunes? Apple made a player that you would actually want, and sold music in a format you would actually want.
Google makes stuff good enough you actually want it. Are you listening, Linux on the Desktop Zealots? Half of all articles on
~Rebecca
Great strategical ploy on Google's parts to really put a chink in the armor of Microsoft. The amount of money they'll spend pushing Firefox is a pennance compared to the cost of marketshare Microsoft will lose. Excellent to see Google really making continued financial backing to Open Source efforts!!!
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Google has no choice but to push firefox as hard as they can. The are facing a threat from the next version of windows / ie. Without a doubt MS is going to use their monopoly desktop to force people to msn search by embedding it into windows. Google should have already been doing this 6 mos ago including a direct download link right on the home page. Same thing goes for open office they need to be using it as a weapon right now also.
Got Code?
Er... no.
That's Google trying to control the plataform. They can contribute to Firefox, either hacking its source or creating extensions. Imagine Firefox with IE marketshare, ~85%, and Google releasing a new product tomorrow, integrated with their Toolbar, on all those desktops.
Plus, Javascript/DOM/XUL support made exactly the way they want.
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The part that scares me is the "download firefox with google toolbar" part. I hope the official builds never include the google toolbar, that would be like IE bundeling Alexa or something. If people want that toolbar they can go get it. Personally I think the toolbar is very bad. First most of its features are already in Firefox, and the only useful feature that isn't, pagerank, is a major privacy concern since it clearly said it sends every URL you visit to google. So no thx.
I think it's probably referring instead to IP tracking or some such, to make sure that the same person or group doesn't download the package umpteen million times.
But the money goes into their ad sense account to spend on more adwords. It doesn't cost them anything, as it is a check written to them selves.
This isn't meant as a troll, but honestly what's the point of the google toolbar on Firefox?
I could understand wanting to have integrated google search and pop-up blocking for IE, but Firefox has google search built right in (along with several other searches), and I can find thing on a given page easy enough with ^F. If I find a term on a page I want to google for it's as easy as highlighting it, ^T, middle click into the google search window.
Given that, what's the point of having a google toobar for Firefox?
Famous Last Words: "hmm...wikipedia says it's edible"
AdWords = Google's advertising program (started as text-only pay-per-click ads on Google' search results pages)
AdSense = program that lets webmasters/bloggers rent space on their pages to Google to display ads drawn from the AdWords program, in return they get a percentage of the ad revenue made by Google from the ads shown on their pages
Promoting Firefox with the Google Toolbar promotes the use of Google, which (over the long run) leads to higher revenues as more people see the ads (both on the search results pages and on other sites via AdSense).
In some ways this is a reaction to competing programs like Yahoo!'s new ad program and also to Chitika's eMiniMalls program. There's no doubt that these programs will benefit some AdSense publishers, but they'll certainly benefit Google itself the most. Even if they have to pay.
Eric
Read my AdSense blog
1) Can Google afford this? The answer is Yes.
2) Who gets paid? Only first time users, apparently and only once. So that means that all of us Firefox users aren't going to get "up to" $1.
3) How is this going to benefit Google or Firefox?
I like the idea of Google and Mozilla teaming up. The Google search bar already appears on Firefox by default and the Google toolbar is helpful for certain people. It all depends on whether you really use it or not. I find it useful for translation and searches. Making my searching more efficient is the goal. It benefits Firefox because most people who have never heard of Firefox use IE withought realizing the problems it has. They have heard of Google and think of it as a reputable company -- therefore, if a reputable company such as Google would partner with a company like Firefox, they would be more willing to switch to Firefox.
Are there people who try Firefox and end up switching back to IE?
"Curse your sudden, but inevitable betrayal!"
I was just wondering if there would be a similar positive response if Microsoft started paying a small amount to people for using MSN Search or making IE only websites. What do YOU think ?