Reno - 1:41 am on Oct 25, 2006 (gmt 0)

....Implying that now profits are a primary concern.

I am not an MBA nor am I employed in the financial sector, but I believe that when you become a publicly traded corporation, your first priority is to work on the behalf of your stockholders. If anyone here is an actual expert in this, please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.

When G was a couple really brilliant techies with a loyal and smart employee following, they could devote themselves to making the best search engine ever, and huge profits be damned. Now, that attitude is no longer an option -- if they fail to maximize profits, the company officers could be held accountable, and in an extreme case, that could even mean a court of law. So, they have evolved and at this point make decisions with the profit mandate gun held in front of their face. We may not like it and my guess is we'll never again see "the Google spirit" of 2001, but it was a gas while it lasted...

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