Google handles about two-thirds of all Internet searches. It owns the largest online video site, YouTube, which is more than 10 times as popular as its nearest competitor. And last year, Google sold nearly $22 billion in advertising, more than any other media company in the world.
p
With all those riches and more, how is Google a relatively small company, one that is vulnerable to competition and whose luck could turn any day?
p
Dana Wagner is happy to explain.
p
Mr. Wagner, who is Google’s senior competition counsel, faces the Sisyphean task of convincing the world that his employer is not unassailable.
p
Competition is a click away, Mr. Wagner says. The phrase is part of a stump speech he has given in Silicon Valley, New York and Washington for the past few months to reporters, legal scholars, congressional staff members, industry groups and anybody else who might influence public opinion about Google.
p
We are in an industry that is subject to disruption, and we can’t take anything for granted, he adds.
p
Google has begun this public-relations offensive because it is in the midst of a treacherous rite of passage for powerful technology companies — regulators are intensely scrutinizing its every move, as they once did with ATT, IBM, Intel and Microsoft. Some analysts say that government opposition, in the United States or in Europe, could be the biggest threat to Google’s continued success.
p
The U.S. Justice Department derailed an important partnership between Google and Yahoo in November because of concerns it would cement Google’s dominance and reduce competition. And Google now faces three new government antitrust investigations.
p
The Justice Department is examining the hiring practices at Google and other technology companies, and it is investigating a class-action settlement between Google and groups representing authors and publishers. The Federal Trade Commission is looking into ties between the boards of Google…