Google turns 10 Video

Google turns 10 Video Transcript

>> You know it's funny, but not very long ago, we were unable to Google anyone we knew, the things we wanted to buy or the places we'd like to go, but it just in 10 years, Google has become more than a verb, it has become part of our culture.

>> In 1998, Madonna's Ray of Light had her back on top of the charts.

>> The song couldn't have been more appropriate since that same year Google was introduced to the world in a faster way than ever to search the worldwide web.

>> It became part of our culture, you know much like Xerox.

>> John Battelle's written a best seller about the rise of Google and says the verb "to Google" quickly became synonymous with speedy learning on virtually every subject.

>> Nearly anything and everything to get smart on nearly any topic exists on the web and Google does a good job at organizing it.

>> Good may be an understatement. These days, more people use Google than all other search engines combined. Of course, that hasn't always been the way.

>> Yahoo once held the mental for search, but even with its catchy name and expensive advertising, Google was able to creep into the mainstream, mostly by word of mouth and without airing a single commercial.

>> We just thought a few of our friends know about it so they would go to that website or to test search and then try it out and people started to use it more and more and word spread.

>> Founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page started Google as Stanford Grad students in a garage. They now run the company from what's called the Googleplex where workers enjoy an array of not so typical perks.

>> They're certainly working, but they're also having a lot of fun. One of the things we believe is that you wanna make an environment that's efficient for people, so that in their personal lives, they can live and enjoy and have a great time and when they're working they can focus on getting their work done.

>> All that inspiration within the company has led Google to countless projects beyond just search. Not that that's always a good thing. Battelle says concerns may be reflected in its stock price, which went from $85 when it went public in August of 2004, to a high of more than 700 last year down to its current price at about $460.

>> The big question is can they choose the right directions, can they let go of the things that perhaps they aren't very good at doing and just focus on, you know, three, four or five projects that taken together make for a cohesive company that can win in every market its in.

>> And so in addition to its fluctuating stock price, Google has had some ups and downs with public opinion. Mostly attributed to privacy concerns over what happens to all that search information. So in some ways Google still finding its way at ten years old and by the way Harry, if you wanna work there, keep in mind, Google gets about 7,000 applications a day, everyday.

>> Everybody wants to cash in.

>> Yeah.

>> I'm trying to remember what we used to use before we use Google.

>> Way back when?

>> Yeah.

>> Lycos, ring a bell? Alta Vista, Excite.

>> Unbelievable.

>> You know Google wasn't first, they were just the best.

>> Yeah, alright, thanks Daniel Sieberg. ^M00:03:10 [ Music ]