Google Layoffs May Come Following Ad Firm Aquisition
Google, the Internet company that seemingly can do no wrong nor make any missteps, is preparing to engage in one of the most time-honored and well-practiced activities of the Web era: the layoff.
With its acquisition of Internet ad firm DoubleClick now approved by European regulators, Google is set to commence the full integration of this early Web success into its strategic and administrative system, which will likely include reducing the company's size, at least where positions are redundant or deemed outside the Web giant's new goals for serving up ads online. According to a memo by Google CEO Eric Schmidt posted yesterday on the Google blog, "there will be reductions in headcount." Most of the layoffs will take place in the U.S., according to the memo.
While the culture of Google is one of continual, almost unabated growth, the culture of DoubleClick is storied with the looming threat of layoffs, at least from its expand-and-contract days through the early Internet boom, bubble and burst phenomenon. This is not to say that all of the possible layoffs will come from the DoubleClick side, as Google will have to determine who among its combined workforce is most valuable to the venture.
The integration of DoubleClick's ad serving technology and reach will have a significant impact on Google's repertoire of online advertising tools, which let people submit ad campaigns online without the help of a salesperson.
Google's goal with this acquisition is to better compete with companies like Yahoo! which have much stronger capabilities with banner and multimedia ads. Google's strength has been with highly personalized and targeted text ads, which Web users seem to appreciate because they are unobtrusive and contextual.
From Official Google Blog (via Infectious Greed by Paul Kedrosky)
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