No ads on the Google search homepage, period. That’s been the Google mantra. But what about….Google Belarus? Astute Searchblog reader Michael Estes came across this recently, and I have to say, if this is the future, I’ll take the past!
Update: You know, I really should have asked first, but….I figured, no way would someone be able to get away with having “google.by” who wasn’t, well, Google. I was wrong. From Google PR:
This site (http://google.by) is not owned, operated or controlled by Google.
We are aware of this site and our legal counsel is investigating the matter.
Maybe I’m just being cynical, but what mantra has Google not reversed itself on? I remember Larry and Sergey saying that any advertising is evil. Gone are the two gusy with nothing but best intentions… 2006 is the year we’ll see the real money hungry Google beast emerge, just wait and see.
John.
‘google.by’ is NOT the official ‘Google Belarus’ webpage.
Facts:
1) It’s not within Google official list:
http://www.google.com/language_tools?hl=en
2) It’s not hosted by Google Inc.:
http://uptime.netcraft.com/up/graph?site=google.by
I’ll betcha $10 that google doesn’t own or run that domain. There’s no WHOIS info that I can find for .by domains, so its impossible to say:
http://www.iana.org/root-whois/by.htm
…but given that the homepage personalization features, advertising, options, and so on are inconistent with the behaviour on every other international google site, I’d willing to be that some enterprising belorussian has created this site to make some ad dollars.
Also: try running a search. The results come from Google.com, with a language parameter of ru. Again, this is inconsitent with the other google sites that retain their international TLD’s across all pages.
Everyone likes to see the champ drop the ball occaisonally, I guess….
Google doesn’t own google.by, see http://www.it-belarus.net/news/read/2004/08/14/
Let’s face it. You are either a repeat offender(figuratively) and click on Adwords or Adsense regularly or you don’t at all: zero.
Targeting is disengenuous and lacks the trust or convenience inherent in its intended value.
So it almost makes no difference to me. I search from the Google toolbar: the homepage is irrelevant.
It’s visual interruption ads that are the most hideous experiental aspect of the user experience. Thanks to Firefox AdBlock extension: I keep rollin’ ad free. I remooved AdBlock for a week and I couldn’t believe the difference: truly another world.
Cheers.
Yep, that domain ain’t Google. It’s hosted by pcihighway.com.
John, a language parameter of ru would be correct because the language of Belarus is Russian.
I hope Michael Estes is not a frequent reader
Belarusian language:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belarusian_language
Google Belarus:
http://www.google.com/intl/be/
Good you followed up on this “fake” story – it had me fooled and I apologize to Google for believing it at first. The AOL deal really shook my faith in them.
Also note the hugely reported incident about visits from Homeland Security to a student who signed out A Mao bio. It was all a hoax.
Oh my GOD! The internet is no longer a bastion of unvarnished truth!?
c’mon , it must be their own mini. So stop cussing.
vondrashek is google, however, google is not vondrashek.signed:THOMAS STEWART
Hi,
Very useful information man.
Thanks
SEM Times
Anyway, it could be an interesting way for Google to begin in CIS. They have very light weight in Russia, Belaruss and Ukraina. In Russia, yandex is the first and google concretly doesn’t exist. Ia asked for google adsense for a very big client and they don’t have offer.. the russia site begun.ru is better for ads. May be have fake google will help them to have presence.. May be, it’s new google: franchising !!
google agreed to put visual adds on their home page as part of their deal to acquire part of AOL. talk aboutt the end of an era. I may start using dogpile, just to recycle google without the ads when they start doing that. it will truly signify the death of their long untarnished frontpage. hey, whatever, they get rich, right…. it IS a biz after all.
Sadly, this is what Google has to pay for being so popular. I really wonder how Google missed this domain and did not register it earlier!
Do you think that Google and other big us companies consider or KNOW that there are differents countries in ex soviet union ?? 😉
Russian federation is about 100 different “republics”..
What about republic of komi ot tchukotka or a simplier example: in ST petersburg district, u can have .spb.ru . Have a look ;-)) http://google.spb.ru
Google always forwards you to the www. subdomain and this one does nto
Google is destined to follow in the foot steps of having crap on their front pages. Eventually they will ad more, little by little.
I found something like the google.by : it is http://www.closebrothers.com
A search page, using Google Technology. And they use adsense too 🙂
so, everybody can make its own Google Search engine on the web 🙂
i am interested how the story ended. A half year later the site is still on.