From Slate's article "Has Google Peaked?":
When I think of Google, I think of the arch-villain Mr. Big from the James Bond film Live and Let Die. His diabolical plan: Flood the streets with free heroin to drive out competing suppliers and dealers. Once users got hooked on his free smack, Mr. Big could leverage control over the entire market.
With a lead-in like this, it's hard not to read the whole thing. The article recounts the myriad of challenges Google is currently facing - everything from a potential deal-break with AOL to click fraud to lowered search spending or their incredibly overvalued stock shares (trading at 4X the PE ratios of Yahoo! & MSN).
There's a definite feeling among those in the tech circles, too that Google obsession, which has dominated venues from Slashdot to del.icio.us may finally be dying down. Of course, there are those who think articles like this are just payback for Google's overhyped media, but I'm skeptical. My instincts tell me Google's in for a change, even if that change is just a less lively lovefest.
Dave - I reach for "kleenex" all the time and keep my food cold in my "fridge". I wonder if "Google" will be the same thing going forward.
This is only mildly anecdotal...but the comments I receive from "average" users who buy our service after finding us on the web...
is I "googled it" far more often than not. In fact that number of responses is astounding/verbalized far more frequently than the 50-55% frequency of actual google users to all search engines.
From this small sample I feel like people may think they are using google even if they aren't!!
But the fact that the phrase is more common in everyday language gives G a big advantage.
(Of course I call every copying machine a xerox - so what do I know!) LOL