Google's GBuy Could Be 'Revolutionary'

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: eekid () aol com
Date: June 12, 2006 7:10:37 AM EDT
To: dave () farber net
Subject: Google's GBuy Could Be 'Revolutionary'

Google's GBuy Could Be 'Revolutionary'

RBC Capital Markets maintained an "outperform" rating on Google in  
light of the impending launch of the company's online payment system,  
currently known as "GBuy."
Consumers using GBuy, which is set for release on June 28, will be  
taken off the merchant's site to complete the payment. This will  
enable Google (nasdaq: GOOG - news - people ) to capture e-commerce  
transaction data, driving more precise targeting in future searches.
"If harnessed, the precision of this targeting could be  
revolutionary," wrote RBC analyst Jordan Rohan in a report Friday.
On its core search results pages, Google will designate each merchant  
accepting GBuy as a "trusted GBuy merchant." If consumers view this  
as a mark of safety and security, Rohan believes this should increase  
click-through rate.
The analyst expects some resistance from merchants who will fear that  
Google will use the transaction data to charge them more for  
sponsored links in the future. Google's bid rank algorithm is  
influenced by click-through rate, and would, therefore, favor GBuy  
merchants, he said.
GBuy looks to be a direct competitor to PayPal's "off-eBay (nasdaq:  
EBAY - news - people )" initiative, which is still early in its  
development, Rohan added. During the beta phase, Google will not  
charge merchants for its payment service. After some period, the  
analyst believes Google will charge 1.5% to 2%, in-line to slightly  
below that of PayPal.
"Short term, GBuy is more negative for eBay than it is positive for  
Google," Rohan said. "Longer-term, it could be a game-changer."

http://www.forbes.com/markets/equities/2006/06/09/ 
google-0609markets09.html

Check out AOL.com today. Breaking news, video search, pictures, email  
and IM. All on demand. Always Free.

-------------------------------------
You are subscribed as lists-ip () insecure org
To manage your subscription, go to
 http://v2.listbox.com/member/?listname=ip

Archives at: http://www.interesting-people.org/archives/interesting-people/