Google is no stranger to competition. It has come up through the ranks like a young boxing phenom plowing his way through all adversaries to become champion. So needless to say, Google can not be intimidated by confrontation. Like any smart business, they capitalize on any advantage their opponents give them. This article will examine some of the most recent blows (sucker punches?) they have given and received, and how they handle the referees judging the fight.
Google Knol
Now entering the ring, weighing in at over 9.1 million articles and standing 253 languages tall, it's the "hard-cover killer," the "reference rapist," "DJ Wiki Wiki Wawa," Wikiiipediaaa! And the crowd goes wild. I know, for me, Wikipedia is one of my favorite sites, and not just for reference. People say the Internet killed the need for people to actually know anything; they can just look it up on the web and forget about it later. Well if that's the case, Wikipedia gave it the death blow. Anyone who's been in school recently knows that professors (the traditionalists) have been desperately trying to hold it back, but clearly there's no stopping a juggernaut, be it the idea of user-created reference content or Wikipedia itself.
After Google's latest announcement, we might have to go with the former. I mean if anything can stop a juggernaut, it's another juggernaut. Although it is yet to be released, Google's new "knol" tool will work by acquiring articles from random users, who will have their names added as credit. The authors can then permit ads to appear alongside the article for a share in the revenue. And like Wikipedia, other users can edit, rate, and comment on the articles.
As I mentioned earlier about the Internet in general, Google has already done wonders towards making information accessible by just about anyone through its search engine. But Google believes that "not everything is written nor is everything well organized to make it easily discoverable." Specifically, they want to make it easier for people to share knowledge and they want the authors to be given the proper credit. The author will have complete editorial control of their "knol," which will act like a simple web page with references, links, and user reviews of the articles.
Because participation in the "knol" community is completely open, Google will rank their quality for search results on a "knol by knol" basis. The content will also be available to other search engines. I'd like to see where the "knols" rank on Google's search engine compared with a Wikipedia entry on the same topic. As of now, Wikipedia ranks in the top three of the search queries for which it has an entry.
From the looks of it, this new Google venture will fall somewhere between the vast encyclopedia that Wikipedia has become and a basic online article directory, like goarticles.com. The one sample I've seen so far shows a very sophisticated design that matches Wikipedia step for step. I imagine this sample showcases what one of their better articles would look like. Even the ads don't take anything away from the overall design of the page, but then this is just a sample.
Wikipedia has become ultra-successful over the last few years and Google has decided to capitalize on their niche; it's simply doing what any business competing in a common market would do. However, at this rate, Google will soon become part of every market. The next few sections will examine some of Google's recent ventures and the not-so-calm affect they've had.
Search Engine News 
