O
ovi
Guest
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. — Google still feels like a startup company, but it's time to make changes that reflect its stature as the world's pre-eminent search business, executives said at the company's annual media day Wednesday.
Some of the changes reflect the harsh scrutiny faced by the idealistic young company over its business practices in China, where it complied with government censors. The changes also result from investors who want more details about the company's operations.
Consumers are also confused sometimes about the nature of Google products released in beta, or test, version, said co-founder Sergey Brin.
"We've sort of abused the word beta a little bit," he said, explaining that people both inside and outside Google "have put more expectations on the things that we throw out there."
Brin and other executives told reporters that test products are often released in rough form to see how they work and to gather feedback from customers. They're not intended to be as bulletproof as the company's flagship search engine, but that's led to confusion by customers who start counting on test products, such as Google's messaging service.
Complete article/source: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2002986233_google11.html
Some of the changes reflect the harsh scrutiny faced by the idealistic young company over its business practices in China, where it complied with government censors. The changes also result from investors who want more details about the company's operations.
Consumers are also confused sometimes about the nature of Google products released in beta, or test, version, said co-founder Sergey Brin.
"We've sort of abused the word beta a little bit," he said, explaining that people both inside and outside Google "have put more expectations on the things that we throw out there."
Brin and other executives told reporters that test products are often released in rough form to see how they work and to gather feedback from customers. They're not intended to be as bulletproof as the company's flagship search engine, but that's led to confusion by customers who start counting on test products, such as Google's messaging service.
Complete article/source: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2002986233_google11.html
