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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?"
all the Firefox installs at the lab here. I'll even download them a few times each for every system, to make sure it downloads properly.
Meh.
I strongly doubt it. Yessir, I do.
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.
Yeah, when I read this I compulsivley ducked in fear of flying office furniture.
Easily. If Google can pay the $100, the $1 (1%) will be no probelm especially since there's a disclaimer - the depending on the user's location part.
Evil people don't think they're evil. - George Lucas, Making of Ep III
I'm sure Google is completely innocent of spyware, but I'm resisting installing the Google toolbar in Firefox, or IE. There's already a Google search bar in Firefox, and I've been anti-addon-toolbar for years now, since every unstable system I've worked on had at least one of them. When the great Google Toolbar Trap is sprung, I'll be on the outside of the box, thank you very much.
Saskboy's blog is good. 9 out of 10 dentists agree.
Google REALLY wants to fscking kill Microsoft! MWAHAHAHAHA!!!
This is much better than a fight between gladiators. Popcorn, anyone? B-)
Will Google be able to pay all those million? Get a grip! They've been paying millions for all those open-source programmers that are working on Open Office and other programs.
They want to hurt Micro$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.
It seems to me that when posting a story like this, at least one of the links should lead to something that actually discusses the subject of the article.
p y?answer=27406&ctx=en:search&query=firefox&topic=0 &type=f
Here is a link to the actual section of the Google AdSense FAQ that mentions the dollar per Firefox install:
http://www.google.com/support/adsense/bin/answer.
Also, Google currently has over 7.5 billion dollars in the bank, so yeah, they could pay one dollar for EVERY PERSON ON EARTH to install Firefox and not go broke.
The suggestion that Google might not be able to "pay for all those downloads" is absolutely rediculous. If there are 10 million Firefox downloads, and Google is paying $1 each, that's basically little more than a rounding error in Google's financial statements. You can check them out at the SEC if you don't believe me. Those numbers are in thousands. As in, Google has cash or marketable securities in the area of 2.1 billion dollars. 10 million is practically rounding error. Google's balance sheet is here: at the SEC
Statistically speaking, there's a 99.998% chance that my IQ is higher than yours. Get over it.
I still use internet explorer (yea yea..) mostly because I don't want to install anything more than I have to. Windows is bloated enough as-is, and I don't need or want extra luggage attatched to my everyday computing. I've actually found that IE is fairly non-obtrusive if you turn all the extra crap off. I guess I've just found that I don't often use Firefox's extra features. I generally browse one page at a time, and I don't use my web browser for anything much more than reading the news (/.) or checking my email.
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
Combination - fun iPhone puzzling
Ok, so I lied -- I found the Fiscal Year 2004 balance sheets, instead of Google's most recent quarterly report. which you can find here. Google does have 7.1 billion in cash and marketable securities. 10 or 20 or even 30 million is rounding Error. Unless every man, woman, and child on the planet decides to download Firefox, Google is fine here.
Statistically speaking, there's a 99.998% chance that my IQ is higher than yours. Get over it.
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
"Will Google be able to pay the millions for all the downloads?"
Checks NYSE.... Do you suppose? Since we're talking about a lot less than "millions", more like a million or so on a good year here on out. That's for all installs, not the fraction of installs with google toolbar.
Since the data/referals they'll get will grow/improve significantly. I would imagine that this is a screaming deal for all parties.
Personally, I doubt I'll use it. The last thing I need is another toolbar I don't use (actually I would use the spell check, but that's a lot of real estate to give up to somthing that should be on the tools menu). The search bar is already more than I want. By more I mean I generally turn it of an use keywords to forward search terms to google from the address bar.
Platform advocacy is like choosing a favorite severely developmentally disabled child.
Don't you think that there is a bigger plan in the works, rather than just a little bit of money here? Like a lot of money? Google is planning the Os in the web, not the OS of the web. Firefox's very open API will only help them, and hurt microsoft. Why pay for windows, when any os that will run firefox will work? Even BeOS could be viable. Even a stripped down PC with no HDD and a knoppix cd, or a PXE machine will work.
Google doesn't want to control the OS, they want to marganilize it, even eliminate it. It's going to get interesting from here on in.
Anybody who thinks "only search as a product" neither understands Google nor the power of search.
Pining for the fjords
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?
Hmm... a scenario:
Google starts providing OpenOffice as a client-side components within Firefox, perhaps downloaded as XPCOM components, perhaps using the GoogleToolbar as the entry point. The browser now provides straightforward access to both thin and thick client functionality.
The gmail, google maps, etc interfaces are melded in too, providing a uniform interface to a free persistent 'office environment' that people can access through any browser, anywhere, with temporary working files stored locally for performance and content network-backed to Google's servers...
This could explain Microsoft's recent launch of Windows Live as - perhaps - a preemptive defensive maneuvour.
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.
Buy a Nintendo DS Lite
Emphasis mine.
This implies that if a user's computer has ever had Firefox installed before, it's ineligible for a referral. Also note "up to" a buck, which implies many users (I'd guess users outside of the United States, but it's not stated anywhere I can readily find) will yield less.
Edit: Found some fine print, where it explicity states the PC must never have had Firefox installed before, regardless of the presence or absence of the Google Toolbar. I imagine a LOT of folks have downloaded Firefox, played with it, then uninstalled it, which means AdSense users don't get kickbacks.
I've put up a link on my site regardless, but I'm not expecting BIG CASH PRIZES.
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.
And exactly how is the Firefox API more open than the IE API? True, we have access to the source code, but exploiting that degree of freedom would only lead to splintering and incompatibilities. If we (rightly) restrict ourselves to the available, published and supported APIs please explain where Firefox has an advantage. I see quite a few plugins and add-ons for IE. In fact, an argument can be made that the IE API is *too* open, which has enabled many exploits.
Regarding the web-based OS: A web browser *MUST* be limited in what it exposes to application developers or else developers of malware will exploit them. Think about it -- much of the power of a PC comes from applications interacting - sharing data in the file system -- having access to the *SAME* data in the file system. Do you want any random web page to have access to your files? No, the only way to prevent that is to lock down the APIs, thus crippling the very applications you think $oogle is contemplating.
The more you regulate a company, the worse its products become.
Internet Explorer 7 beta now has tabbed browsing, a search bar, one button to errase all privacy data, ... Search google, look at some screenshots. It's almost a copy of firefox. I liked it's functionality even better. It's dirty, but will people care when they get it automatically installed at their computers?
In the heady days of '98 and '99, MSN and AOL would pay the PC vendor a nice big bounty fo $10-20 if you signed up with them. But since them microsoft took over the ISP signup process and tried to take the money for themselves, which caused no end of controversy.
I dont know what the current status is, but I know this: the bounty is back. Not from sites like webvan, boo and whoever else used to pay kickbacks to the OEM for signing up to their web site, but just the search engine.
As an aside, if Sun wanted Java preinstalled on all machines, they only had to offer a bounty too. Now that google are prepared to pay, Maybe boxes with firefox+toolbar+java will become standard.
My Google AdSense referral page does not include any reference to the Firefox referral program.
It seems they are limiting it to sites in USA or in English (just guessing).
How about just having a "download Firefox" link on Google.com? They get, what, a billion visitors each day? All the people who really want to spread firefox are already spreading Firefox.
News Flash-- Microsoft paying 2$ for every firefox uninstall.
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"
I cant believe how lame this idea is by Google. There will be a complete feast of recruiting over at forums such as DigitalPoint etc. I can easily see how people will try to divide their income into as many accounts they can possible create to get that 100 bucks for a signup.
So lame. So 1996. Go google, king of pyramid-schemes.
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" $1.
3) How is this going to benefit Google or Firefox?
I like the idea of Google and Mozilla teaming up. The Google search bar already appears on Firefox by default and the Google toolbar is helpful for certain people. It all depends on whether you really use it or not. I find it useful for translation and searches. Making my searching more efficient is the goal. It benefits Firefox because most people who have never heard of Firefox use IE withought realizing the problems it has. They have heard of Google and think of it as a reputable company -- therefore, if a reputable company such as Google would partner with a company like Firefox, they would be more willing to switch to Firefox.
Are there people who try Firefox and end up switching back to IE?
"Curse your sudden, but inevitable betrayal!"
They certainly have enough money to pay the "milions" of FireFox downloads. And rest assured that they will MAKE money out of it as well.
The prime reason for M$ being number one is because M$ bundeled the browser with its operating system. I certainly hope that FireFox or why not KHTML-based browser beats m$ explorer. IMHO the only way to make the web more secure. Heck why not abandon m$ altogheter and switch to Linux or Mac. Stories of viruses, worms, and zombie's will all soon be a thing of the past.
Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far they can go. T. S. Eliot
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 ?
Personally, you know, I see your posts all over /. and I don't agree with a lot of them, but this was simple, beautiful, and hilarious. Thanks.
Everything I've ever learned the hard way was based on a statistically invalid sample.
Thanks for the comment - glad you substantially agree.
:-) They could also build it into say, froogle, gmail, etc.
> done in more of an AJAX style
Unfortunately, AJAX, while useful:
(a) isn't responsive enough
(b) is not rich enough.
(c) doesn't have deep enough access to local resources (eg: local drag and drop, copy and paste, vision and voice input processing, spellchecker and grammer checker processing,)
(d) require a total rewrite (perhaps innovative automated MFC/Swing -> HTML translation libraries can help)
(e) depends totally on network access (no ability to work disconnected)
That's why XPCOM would be better - users aren't willing to sacrifice all this current functionality just for network-backed storage.
However google can proceed to write (say) a way to automatically translate openoffice display primitives (eg: combobox, list selection) to HTML and provide that functionality over the web. (It may even be faster on some machines, given how slow openoffice is compared to MS Office
For eg: I could go to froogle, search for something, copy/ paste a table comparing vendors for that item into a gmail _as a embedded spreadsheet_, forward that to my boss who sort the _copy_ of the data using the spreadsheet function (the live Froogle data itself may have changed), and approves something for purchase. This could be scripted (on Google's servers) with OpenOffice Basic
There is already a option to run OpenOffice inside Firefox using the npsoplugin.dll
Now if they'd integrate it a bit more, make it possible to save documents to Google servers over WebDAV or such (Base, Gmail or whatever)...