Google Again

I wrote the following on February 9:

"My suspicion is that Google's power will begin fraying at the edges as customers and advertisers realize that Google has too much power and too much information - but substantive change to its competitive position will not occur until a great alternative comes along."

In today's NY Times, [I think that] Randy Stross is arguing for, or saying that there will be regulatory pressure on Google as it approaches 70% market share. I can't imagine the government or anyone else telling you which search engine to use. They can't separate the ad portion out or else there will be no business there. For the time being the downward pressure applied on Google's market share will come from the fact that the market hates a monopoly. Then something new will come along.