Blogger and how it is being used by Google

[Hugene]

I've always wondered about the commercial impact of Google's businesses, other than it's SE and AdWord/AdSense. Are they able to monetize some of their other products? With the news that FB is getting tons of traffic, are the other Google products like Picassa / Orkut / Blogger being considered as strategic and worked on? But if they don't generate cash why would they be supported?

Blogger is a tool I was wondering about: it's tons of content that probably doesn't monetize much. However, it's probably not requiring much money to keep it going, as it is already developed and it's not rocket-science (not like the SE). I came to the conclusion that G should offer Blogger as a platform for other people to use and make some $ like this.

Well it seems that I could be a manager at G, because with the latest changes in G Apps, Blogger is now available as a platform for businesses to host their blog onto: [readwriteweb.com...]

Good business move, will make Blogger generate some cash.

[jimbeetle]

But if they don't generate cash why would they be supported?

Blogger is a tool I was wondering about: it's tons of content that probably doesn't monetize much.

If I correctly remember, some years ago Sergey was asked about both AdSense and Blogger in an interview. Basically the same question: Why, what is Google getting out of products/programs/acquisitions like these? He answered that Google wanted to encourage the creation of more content to lead to a larger index to be able to give more and/or better results to search queries.

[Hugene]

wanted to encourage the creation of more content

Yes, I've heard this argument before and I don't really believe it, for two reasons: 1) there is already enough content out there, 2) had Blogger gone into anyone else's hands, by its blogging-nature, it would have still remained opened for G to index (unless of course it had closed down, but M$, Y or many other media firms could have bought it too).

I was wondering more about the business motivations of having/keeping these tools like Blogger. We know that G is not a charity and would close a product that doesn't perform well (like Wave and many many other before it).

But do they consider the money aspect only or the traffic is enough to keep a money losing product?

I think the money aspect is probably very important, and that's why I was saying that opening-up Blogger to Google App users is an amazing business move, because it can now be used by paying clients.

The "free" business model is good for us consumers, but must IMHO involve at least some paying by some sub-set of consumers. Businesses can be that subset. This is just like M$ which might be victim of a lot of piracy on the home PC users side, but more than makes it up when these same consumers go to their office and use the same old software, but now paid for by their employer.