It is no secret that Facebook and Google don’t quite get along. On paper, it seems like a marriage made in heaven: the world’s largest social network and the world’s largest search engine. If the two of them teamed up, they could quite literally take over the Internet. Since Google wants to take over the Internet all on its own, it is not interested in teaming up with Facebook. This is why the search giant developed Google+, which it hoped would grow larger than Facebook and overtake the social giant’s reign at the top of the social network hierarchy. Unfortunately, that coup never occurred and both platforms have been locked in a battle ever since; and so far the quarrel shows no signs of abatement. The only question that remains is, how will Google handle Facebook’s new updates? The rumor is, Facebook has plenty up its sleeve.
Google Shuns Facebook in the Search Results
Facebook updates and Google go together like oil and water. In other words, they don’t mix. Case in point, Google took Facebook right out of the search results a few years ago. That’s right. You may notice that if you search for Facebook profiles or Facebook content, you just can’t find it in Google. It just can’t be done, and that’s no accident. Google doesn’t want Facebook infringing on its Google+ traffic. One thing is for certain, however. Whatever updates Facebook comes up with, Google is carefully watching and taking notes.
Google+ Copies Facebook
Ever since Facebook first arrived on the scene, Google has been paying attention, taking notes and borrowing what it can to make its own platform even more robust. Facebook made the Like a household name, so Google came up with the +1. So you can bet that any future updates the social media giant comes up with, Google will have its developers working overtime to try and replicate Facebook’s success.
Facebook isn’t taking this lying down, however. The social network is constantly trying to make things happen. It recently purchased communications app WhatsApp for a record $19 billion and has also reportedly purchased a drone company for the purpose of delivering Internet service to anyone who might need it, even those who live in developing countries.
As of now, it seems that the two Internet behemoths are locked in a standstill. They are still pulling in record numbers; each one boasts far more users than the previous year and revenue is still stretching way off the charts. Things look good in both camps and neither’s success seems to be slowing the other down. However, Facebook updates and Google playing to catch up is a scenario that is likely to play out again and again as we head into the next few years. It will be very interesting to see what Facebook comes up with and if Google can catch up.
Facebook Updates and Google – The Future
Facebook has surprised many people in the last few years, particularly investors; many of whom were upset immediately after the initial evaluation, as they perceived the platform’s value to be overinflated. Still, Facebook has continued to grow and proliferate and more people than ever are using it. You would be hard pressed to find a teenager over eighteen, an adult or even an elderly person who didn’t know someone with a Facebook page. You can’t even turn on the TV without seeing commercials featuring a Facebook symbol urging you to visit the company’s social networking page. Would it be crazy to postulate that Facebook may one day overtake Google?
It sounds crazy, mostly because Google has become a household name. Instead of asking someone to search for something, you tell them, “Google it.” Yet Facebook is connecting people and businesses in all new ways. Instead of building websites and optimizing them for the search engines, what if all you needed was a Facebook page to reach out to your customers, connect with your friends and family, order your groceries, make appointments with your doctor, dentist or local spa? We may see the day when Facebook Updates and Google become synonymous with search. Or we may wake up one day to see Google fall by the wayside completely. With how fast the Internet moves and how cut-throat business can be, a Googleless future is not out of the question.
Keep in mind that I am not advocating Google’s demise. Quite the opposite. Yet Google should probably learn to work with Facebook, to integrate its updates into its search engine and try to come to terms with the fact that Google+ will never capture what Facebook has so beautifully done. The social giant has brought people together in ways that have never before been possible, and the platform has been very successful at it. Facebook updates and Google will continue to dominate the headlines, but one or the other could become the Internet leader in the very near future. It’s anyone’s guess who will end up King of the Internet.
