All Google, All the Time

Abstract

Google:(gü,gól), vb: To use the Google search engine to locate Internet information on just about anything. E.g. “The anxious Dad googled his daughter’s blind date. Boy was he surprised!”

Actually, googling Google anytime over the last several weeks would have brought you a wealth of new developments that have kept the search engine industry’s major player in the public and legal eye. Ever since this summer’s initial public offering, which brought Google over $1.6 billion in new investments, the search engine’s every move has been played out on newspaper front pages, business front pages and countless Web logs. Many of the moves have been of primarily of interest of financial analysts and Google’s new stockholders. However, some of Google’s actions have had or could have significant impact on the information industry as we know it, and the legal principals that we deal with.

Keywords: trademark law, infringement, disputes, lawsuits, Google, consumer confusion, keyword advertising system, sponsored links, search results, information industry