Is Google steering its music-related search results towards MySpace, and away from Lala?
That certainly seems like the case to numerous executives, and a conclusion reached independently by Digital Music News, TechCrunch, and other onlookers.
But not Google. On Monday, Google executive Gabriel Stricker told Digital Music News that nothing has changed in the search methodology, despite the apparently obvious realignment. “The frequency with which a partner is displayed is determined algorithmically, and there have been no changes to impact the frequency of one partner or another,” Stricker relayed.
So what about a before and after comparison? A recent, ad-hoc test involving 20 songs revealed 19 MySpace-served results, but unfortunately, a ‘before’ sample was not taken. Stricker quickly pulled up a Lala-served result, which certainly still exist, though the example was “equally unscientific” in his words. And in perspective, to the outside music fan, the difference is marginal – if noticeable at all.