comScore Web Power Grab: Google Data Games and Cookie Monster
What a mighty data sword comScore brandishes!
comScore’s chief marketing spokesperson, Marv Pollack, last week publicly decried a purported “ugly reality” of “using site server data for media planning,” an unsurprising self-serving lambast against Web properties’ internal tracking systems aimed at a comScore-centric propping up of “people-based information.” Polllack is unequivocal:
“The most deleterious problem with site server data is caused by cookie deletion. An important comScore study published last year showed — beyond a shadow of a doubt — that 31% of Internet users delete their cookies in a month and that the average cookie deleter does so four times per month.”
REALLY? Given that Pollack studied economics at Princeton University, it is surprsing that he would hail a comScore “study” to be irrefutable, claiming absoluteness “beyond a shadow of a doubt.”
comScore’s “numbers” are in fact routinely doubted. Last year, Randall Rothenberg, CEO of the Interactive Advertising Bureau, publicly confronted comScore’s CEO, Magid Abraham, about the inability of “sample-based research” to get “an exact count.”
At a recent behavioral advertising conference in New York City, the keynote Internet publisher told me comScore’s claims of double digit cookie deletion wildly overstate the observed behavior of individuals online.
Today, the CEO of comScore takes to his corporate blog to publicly attempt to undue the Google damage his company did in private earlier in the week.
When the “news” of comScore’s ”January 2008 qSearch paid click report” surfaced on Tuesday, via third-party “reports” of third-party commentary on what was purportedly in the supposed comScore client report, I immediately went to comScore.com to read its “January 2008 qSearch paid click report” first-hand.
No such document is publicly available at the comScore Website, however, so I relied on my own ongoing, proprietary analysis of GOOG’s propsects and concluded: The Web Economy Rejoices: Google IS Overrated and Due For BIGGER Fall!
Is comScore’s Abraham now feeling remorse for having seemingly spurred multi-billion dollar depreciation of GOOG? Did Eric Schmidt and company make a non-surprising suggestion to Abraham that he offer a ”less surprsing” more “careful analysis” of comScore’s GOOG moving numbers?
Abraham’s “clarification” of a supposedly misinterpreted comScore communication about Google’s internal operational performance presents as a long-winded version of a Google earnings call cheerleading its own financial performance. The CEO of comScore is unabashed in his public support of Google–and, consequently, of GOOG.
The CEO of comScore personally vouches for what he deems to be evidence of Google’s “clever design”:
the softness in Google’s paid click metrics is primarily a result of Google’s own quality initiatives
the improved revenue yield will continue to deliver strong revenue growth in the first quarter.
continuing to do very well as far as consumer usage and competitive position.
In fact, Google wins by providing more relevant ads for consumers and a less cluttered ad environment for marketers.
Not convinced yet? Abraham graciously includes a live, bolded link to Google.com, directing all his comScore blog readers to a Google AdWords sales pitch for its generous “policies”!
ADVERTISERS BEWARE THOUGH, of Google, and now, comScore’s thumbs up for Google’s AdWords mulit-billion dollar agenda.
HERE AT INSIDER CHATTER, READERS ARE WARNED OF HOW Google Tightens Screws on Advertisers: AdWords Black Box Gets Blacker
More exclusive analysis of the MYTH of an allmighty, benevolent Google:
Why Advertisers LOSE In Publicis, Google SEM Deal and
Yellow Pages Get Reprieve? The Myth of King Google Local Advertising ROI and
Reach Local Advertising? How Google Squeezes SEMs and AdWords Buyers and
Local Ad Sales War: Why Google is a Guaranteed Winner and
Google AdWords Plus Box: Local CPC Bidding War Unleashed! and
Google Apps & Maps: Enterprise and Local Business STILL Missing and
Google Zeitgeist: $200 University Payola AdWords Scam and
How Google AdSense FAILS Better Business Bureau
UPDATE: Magid Abraham: Long On Google, Short on comScore!
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