Google revenue growth numbers should be plotted against unemployment numbers.

Correlation does not equal causation.

Of course not, it's a just a coincidence that clicks to our websites decrease and Google's earnings skyrocket every quarter. Do you have a good statistics book in mind for us to read?

I think rather than plot Google revenue against unemployment - since unemployment has tons of factors other than Google screwing over websites - we should focus on producing proof that Google's SERP changes have actually resulted in significant income loss for individual websites, resulting in closures of businesses, lay-offs and/or inability to grow the business due to lack of income.

And why? Because THAT is actually "bad for consumers", which is the main criteria in an anti-trust case - not harm done to us, but harm done to consumers. Even if Google Search had the 100% pure intentions they claim to, the fact that merely shifting their SERPs around in an attempt to please search consumers has the unintended side effect of wrecking some small businesses and raising up others, that's not really letting consumers decide with their dollars which companies they want to keep around (which is how the market is supposed to work).

Further, if Google is deliberately shoving some people down in rankings (not just us, but companies like Yelp and others who complained in the anti-trust hearing, who seem able to prove it) and boosting companies who grease their palms into first place, then small business is completely screwed, which is absolutely grade-A "anti-competitive" and "bad for consumers."

Of course, I'm coming from the perspective that we need an anti-trust case against Google and nothing else even has a chance of getting them to... well, maybe do less evil, at least?

I honestly don't know what people are searching for that has these skewed rankings?

I'd love to know.

Because when I do a search, it contains the sites I would expect to find.

Silicon: I just noticed that Adsense accounts for 2.6 billion of the 9.72 billion in revenue. Is that surprising to anyone?

I just noticed on Google announcement:

Google’s partner sites generated revenues, through AdSense programs, of $2.60 billion, or 27% of total revenues, in the third quarter of 2011. This represents a 18% increase from third quarter 2010 network revenues of $2.20 billion.

18% ? Lemme see...I think this is about how much my biggest site lost in the last 3 months in Adsense revenue. Strange too...traffic up, site improved, CTR the same...

aleksl: Hmmm. Yeah that is strange...interesting to me how strange works so well for Google.

Yup...

And by the way, all the Occupy / 99% protesters around the country all use android phones to communicate and organize their protests...