Is Google's ranking algorithm an anti-trust violation?

11 years ago

Originally Posted by onSubie

Google's only response (thus far) is "in our opinion, sites with affiliate links are of less value to the public and devaluing them is in the public's best interest".

I can't find that quote - where did you get it from?

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onSubie

11 years ago

Originally Posted by jxam69

I can't find that quote - where did you get it from?

Sorry, I was paraphrasing their general attitude, not quoting a direct statement.

If you read through their ToS you will see they define a "thin" site with no value as any site with affiliate links.

My question is, do they actually devalue affiliate links or is that speculation?

And, if they do devalue affiliate links, would that be considered an anti-trust violation?

I realize that a lot of what Google does is considered 'anti-trust' by a lot of people, but it is expensive and difficult to pursue. As Google has faced the issues before.

Edit: I'm not saying this is happening, I have just read it from a number of sources and I'm wondering (as some who replied have) if it is true or another Google myth. If it is true, I am thinking it could be anti-trust issue.

In any event, it may be moot because as grotesque as some of Google's behaviour is, the government doesn't seem to want another anti-trust tangle with them.

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BarryOnline

11 years ago

Google has no problem with affiliate links, they have a problem with 'thin' affiliate sites that don't provide value to the user.

Affiliate programs - Webmaster Tools Help

Having a thin site plastered with affiliate links will cause problems. A content rich site with few affiliate links will not.

Originally Posted by onSubie

Sorry, I was paraphrasing their general attitude, not quoting a direct statement.

If you read through their ToS you will see they define a "thin" site with no value as any site with affiliate links.

My question is, do they actually devalue affiliate links or is that speculation?

And, if they do devalue affiliate links, would that be considered an anti-trust violation?

I realize that a lot of what Google does is considered 'anti-trust' by a lot of people, but it is expensive and difficult to pursue. As Google has faced the issues before.

Edit: I'm not saying this is happening, I have just read it from a number of sources and I'm wondering (as some who replied have) if it is true or another Google myth. If it is true, I am thinking it could be anti-trust issue.

In any event, it may be moot because as grotesque as some of Google's behaviour is, the government doesn't seem to want another anti-trust tangle with them.

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onSubie

11 years ago

Originally Posted by BarryOnline

Google has no problem with affiliate links, they have a problem with 'thin' affiliate sites that don't provide value to the user.

Affiliate programs - Webmaster Tools Help

Having a thin site plastered with affiliate links with cause problems. A content rich site with few affiliate links will not.

That's pretty much what I thought but I have read differing opinions.

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TuNguyen

11 years ago

May i ask if there has been any test carried out, or any proof to show that google devalues sites because they have a lot of affiliate links? Or is this still just another IM myth?

Originally Posted by onSubie

Hi

I was looking at some products by legal warrior kindsvater and one is a WP plugin that hides affiliate links.

The idea is, Google looks for affiliate links and devalues sites/pages that have them for SEO purposes. Links masked 'pretty links' style don't help as Google simply follows the masked link and finds the affiliate url anyway.

This got me thinking. Would Amazon (or other affiliate business CJ, CB) have any traction making an antitrust complaint?

Google is using its dominance to unfairly target sites that legally and ethically engage in Amazon's affiliate program.

By putting sites with affiliate links on a "less valuable" tier they are financially harming both Amazon and their affiliates.

Google's only response (thus far) is "in our opinion, sites with affiliate links are of less value to the public and devaluing them is in the public's best interest".

So, does Google actually devalue a page's SEO score if they detect affiliate links?

And if so, isn't that an anti-trust violation as those links are legally placed and used as part of another company's business?

Curious about opinions.

Thanks

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BarryOnline

11 years ago

I have no problems ranking sites/pages with raw affiliate links. Neve cloaked or hidden one in my life. I have no idea why people believe they are a problem with SEO.

The number of affiliate links on a page can have a negative impact on rankings, but affiliates links themselves are not a problem.

Google views affiliates links as an advert, too many of them (just like to many Adsense ads) on a page looks spammy and will have a negative impact. Just don't go over board with affiliate links and you'll be fine.

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TuNguyen

11 years ago

Originally Posted by BarryOnline

...The number of affiliate links on a page can have a negative impact on rankings, but affiliates links themselves are not a problem.

Google views affiliates links as an advert, too many of them (just like to many Adsense ads) on a page looks spammy and will have a negative impact. Just don't go over board with affiliate links and you'll be fine.

Interesting, are there any evidence of this?

Also, if you nofollow the affiliate links, does that change things? (I suspect not)

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Cosmit 11 years ago

i place plenty of affiliate links on #1 ranked sites and no change. i think this may be a myth, and if not, i dont think the effect is significant and worth talking about
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BarryOnline

11 years ago

Originally Posted by TuNguyen

Interesting, are there any evidence of this?

Also, if you nofollow the affiliate links, does that change things? (I suspect not)

Look at Googles 'above the fold' and page layout algorithm updates for example. Pages with too many ads above the fold dropped in rankings because they look spammy.

Quote from Google:

"If you click on a website and the part of the website you see first either doesn’t have a lot of visible content above-the-fold or dedicates a large fraction of the site’s initial screen real estate to ads, that’s not a very good user experience. Such sites may not rank as highly going forward."

If you think about it, Google crawls a page and is looking for quality content. If they crawl a page with 100 words of content and 50 affiliate links, that page is low quality and will drop.

No following won't help. That just stops PR from flowing, doesn't pass anchor text and the link is dropped from Googles link graph. Matt Cutts has said that Google automatically views affiliate links from big networks as no follow anyway.

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TuNguyen

11 years ago

Originally Posted by BarryOnline

Look at Googles 'above the fold' and page layout algorithm updates for example. Pages with too many ads above the fold dropped in rankings because they look spammy.

Quote from Google:

"If you click on a website and the part of the website you see first either doesn't have a lot of visible content above-the-fold or dedicates a large fraction of the site's initial screen real estate to ads, that's not a very good user experience. Such sites may not rank as highly going forward."

If you think about it, Google crawls a page and is looking for quality content. If they crawl a page with 100 words of content and 50 affiliate links, that page is low quality and will drop.

No following won't help. That just stops PR from flowing, doesn't pass anchor text and the link is dropped from Googles link graph. Matt Cutts has said that Google automatically views affiliate links from big networks as no follow anyway.

So essentially, this is still speculation then.

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BarryOnline 11 years ago

Originally Posted by TuNguyen

So essentially, this is still speculation then.

The OP is saying:

"Google is using its dominance to unfairly target sites that legally and ethically engage in Amazon's affiliate program.

By putting sites with affiliate links on a "less valuable" tier they are financially harming both Amazon and their affiliates."

Basically, this is not happening.
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yukon

Banned 11 years ago

Not being able to rank a page in the SERPs sounds like a personal problem to me, stop looking for excuses & learn to rank pages.

Related thread for above the fold.

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jtuttlechiro

11 years ago

Not sure if it is. But we'll do a search and gather more info...

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SunilTanna

11 years ago

You don't think google has free speech rights to express its own opinions on its own sites?

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yukon Banned 11 years ago

Originally Posted by SunilTanna

You don't think google has free speech rights to express its own opinions sites?

That's exactly how a lot of people act If they're not ranked #1 in Google SERPs. If they're not ranked #1 Google must be screwing them over. Those same people would whine & cry If they were told what to do with their own sites but they think it's ok to do Google that way (tell them how to run their site/SERPs). Nothing more aggravating than people that walk around with their hands out & the What can you give me way of thinking.
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Loopydupe

11 years ago

hmmmm, i have never heard of that myself, but to be on the safe side just include a few affiliate links.

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