Google recently became a domain name registrar, increasing the threat of increased competition to Register.com (ticker: RCOM). But now Google seems to be saying that it might not get into the domain name registration business:
SearchGuild via Search Engine News reports:
Eileen Rodriguez, a Google spokeswoman, hardly quelled the speculation by explaining that the whole thing was really a learning opportunity for the company. Google "has become a domain name registrar to learn more about the Internet's domain name system," she said recently in an e-mail message. "While we have no plans to register domains at this time, we believe this information can help us increase the quality of our search results.Quick comment: If Google can track changes in domain ownership, that will help its search results. Currently, Google's search info lags ownership changes in domains, which means that Google keeps sending you to sites after their ownership and content change. Probably more important, Google can more rapidly index new domains.
Stock impact: incrementally positive for Register.com
RCOM chart below.
