On the Yahoo blog, Yodel Anecdotal (nice name), Semel posts some thoughts on the changes at Yahoo (I love that comments are open, are you listening, Google?). It seems clear to me, though I have no particular insights here, that Dan Rosensweig left because he did not like the idea of running the Audience group, which seems an equal to the new Advertising group run by Sue Decker. What I wonder is whether this new approach will work – will whoever runs the Audience group have the freedom to truly create great products? Or will it be subservient to Advertising’s demands? This is the great, central conflict of all Packaged Goods Media companies. Stay tuned, as they used to say.
Semel Blogs
On the Yahoo blog, Yodel Anecdotal (nice name), Semel posts some thoughts on the changes at Yahoo (I love that comments are open, are you listening, Google?). It seems clear to me, though I have no particular insights here, that Dan Rosensweig left because he did not like the…
fyi, Yahoo Anecdotal comments are still moderated, at least when i was posting in the wee hours the other night.
(wonder if i had used the word FUCK whether they’d have let it slide, or if i’d have been stuck in comment limbo… 😉
I am most interested in your article about Google Checkout, not so much for its content, but for the fact that you mentioned that you were on the phone with Tom Oliveri, head of Google Checkout. I used GC recently (one time only and no so-called freebies)to purchase a Nintendo Wii as a Christmas present. Within one day, I asked GC to cancel my order as I had information the company they were collecting for was a scam. I only received generic e-mails back telling me how to check my status. I have been going back and forth with their e-mails for about 2 weeks now (except they don’t even reply to anything I send them anymore). I still have no order information, in spite of me telling them to cancel my order, they gave the money to the merchant anyway and I’m out $325.00 with no recourse and no way to even call GC as they do not have personal customer assistance, only e-mails and, as I said before, they are not even responding to those at this point. I would be very interested in finding out just how exactly to contact someone at Google that might help. I live outside of Chicago and have tried all of their local listings but the phones just ring and ring – no one answers.
By the way, I have done some checking on other blog sites and this seems to be a pretty common problem with GC. Those that the system works for are happy because they get all kinds of cash back and goodies, but if you need help, LOOK OUT!!!! They have absolutely none to offer. This really surprised me because I had always thought of Google as being synonymous with internet safety and security. I guess I was really mistaken.
Any thoughts or comments would be appreciated. I have saved ALL of my correspondence to date with the so-called “Customer Support” department at Google Checkout if anyone is interested in seeing all the gory details.
Thanks.