# What if google charged us each time we used it? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 8, 2016, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-google-charged-us-each-time-we-used-it/762192 "2016-08-08T21:43:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Guest-starring\_Id](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guest-starring_id/32/21736_2.png) [@Guest-starring\_Id](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guest-starring_Id)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2016, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-google-charged-us-each-time-we-used-it/762192/1 "2016-08-08T21:43:04Z")
Sure, there’s other search engines out there, does anyone here use them? Me - just googs, probably around 10 hits a day for various shit. What if google charged, say 50¢ per hit? (buuuuuuuuuuuwaahaahaah! I will never _ever_ say, btw, how I dastardly summoned that cents sign!) Would that result in a mass exodus to other search engines, or would other search engines think - ‘well, if google wants to go for a money grab, we will too’? I hate that niggling feeling that I’m _totally_ gapping out here on something super-duper obvious that will be brought to my attention in the first post or two. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2016, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-google-charged-us-each-time-we-used-it/762192/2 "2016-08-08T21:46:13Z")
People would stop using it. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2016, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-google-charged-us-each-time-we-used-it/762192/3 "2016-08-08T21:50:25Z")
> [@Eddie The Horrible](#): > > Sure, there’s other search engines out there, does anyone here use them? Me - just googs, probably around 10 hits a day for various shit. > What if google charged, say 50¢ per hit? Per hit, or per search? ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2016, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-google-charged-us-each-time-we-used-it/762192/4 "2016-08-08T21:54:56Z")
Let’s move this over to IMHO. Colibri General Questions Moderator ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2016, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-google-charged-us-each-time-we-used-it/762192/5 "2016-08-08T21:57:13Z")
This could be just the break the Bing campaign has been waiting for. ---
**Author:** ![Chihuahua](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dec6dc/32.png) [@Chihuahua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chihuahua)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2016, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-google-charged-us-each-time-we-used-it/762192/6 "2016-08-08T22:00:45Z")
If Google charged and others didn’t, everyone would quit using Google. If all search engines charged, then web commerce would grind to a trickle. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2016, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-google-charged-us-each-time-we-used-it/762192/7 "2016-08-08T22:03:38Z")
I’d pay a dime per search, with no ads. ---
**Author:** ![Guest-starring\_Id](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guest-starring_id/32/21736_2.png) [@Guest-starring\_Id](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guest-starring_Id)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2016, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-google-charged-us-each-time-we-used-it/762192/8 "2016-08-08T22:15:55Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > Per hit, or per search? thanks - per search, I should’ve said. > [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > This could be just the break the Bing campaign has been waiting for. I still get a little misty-eyed thinking about ask jeeves. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2016, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-google-charged-us-each-time-we-used-it/762192/9 "2016-08-08T23:11:57Z")
> [@Eddie The Horrible](#): > > thanks - per search, I should’ve said. > I still get a little misty-eyed thinking about ask jeeves. They do charge. But, they charge their advertisers, not the people doing the searches. ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2016, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-google-charged-us-each-time-we-used-it/762192/10 "2016-08-08T23:13:11Z")
The bottom line is that Google and its competitors are already making tons of money from advertising support searches. But just to consider the alternative revenue model, two issues at least: 1. Google is good partly because so many people use it. Without all the data to crunch on who searches for what and which links they find useful, the search results would be less accurate to begin with. It’s one of those issues where you need a critical mass. If you charge and limit the number of users and the number of searches, then you lower the quality of the service. 2. Psychologically, once you establish something as being free, it’s very hard to start charging for it. Even when people sit down and rationally think “Based on the value of my time, the cost of inefficient searches and the price of tea in China, it’s worth x cents per search” there’s still an emotional component that says “It used to be free - no way they’re ripping me off!” ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2016, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-google-charged-us-each-time-we-used-it/762192/11 "2016-08-08T23:16:52Z")
Just because there’s no nickel slot on your WiFi connector doesn’t mean they don’t charge us. Personally, I’d take the nickel slot. ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2016, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-google-charged-us-each-time-we-used-it/762192/12 "2016-08-09T00:13:38Z")
At work, we’re forced to use IEeeeee, where the default is Bing (that’s locked down too). It’s one less step to use that then to pull up google. There’s been times where I’ve had to do a couple searches to get my desired results. Would that count as one or multiple searches since the first one gave me unexpected porn rather than what I was _really_ looking for? > [@Eddie The Horrible](#): > > 50¢ per hit? (buuuuuuuuuuuwaahaahaah! I will never _ever_ say, btw, how I dastardly summoned that cents sign!) \+0162 (I knew that w/o looking it up). ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2016, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-google-charged-us-each-time-we-used-it/762192/13 "2016-08-09T00:46:24Z")
> [@Chihuahua](#): > > If Google charged and others didn’t, everyone would quit using Google. > > If all search engines charged, then web commerce would grind to a trickle. One of them would break ranks and realize if could gather all search traffic by offering free searches to users and charging advertisers. And the advertisers would be happy to pay for space on the search engine that everyone was using. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2016, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-google-charged-us-each-time-we-used-it/762192/14 "2016-08-09T00:52:08Z")
> [@Eddie The Horrible](#): > > I still get a little misty-eyed thinking about ask jeeves. None of those new-fangled sites for me. I’m sticking with [Web Crawler](https://www.webcrawler.com/). ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2016, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-google-charged-us-each-time-we-used-it/762192/15 "2016-08-09T01:29:24Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > Just because there’s no nickel slot on your WiFi connector doesn’t mean they don’t charge us. > > Personally, I’d take the nickel slot. I would very much like to know how you think Google is charging you. I mean you, as opposed to their advertisers. As someone put it in another thread somewhere (I think it was said about Facebook, not Google, but the point is the same): We (the users) are not Google’s customers. We’re Google’s product. ---
**Author:** ![GusNSpot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gusnspot/32/436_2.png) [@GusNSpot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GusNSpot)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2016, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-google-charged-us-each-time-we-used-it/762192/16 "2016-08-09T02:00:05Z")
And if you are lazy as I and want to save one key stroke, ALT+155 is your huckleberry. ¢ ---
**Author:** ![Kedikat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed655f/32.png) [@Kedikat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kedikat)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2016, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-google-charged-us-each-time-we-used-it/762192/17 "2016-08-09T05:31:41Z")
> [@Martian Bigfoot](#): > > I would very much like to know how you think Google is charging you. I mean you, as opposed to their advertisers. > > As someone put it in another thread somewhere (I think it was said about Facebook, not Google, but the point is the same): We (the users) are not Google’s customers. We’re Google’s product. The many billions in advertising that companies spend is recouped from the buyers of their products. We do pay for Google searches. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2016, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-google-charged-us-each-time-we-used-it/762192/18 "2016-08-09T05:33:57Z")
> [@Kedikat](#): > > The many billions in advertising that companies spend is recouped from the buyers of their products. We do pay for Google searches. Yes, but this is borderline sophistry. You’re entirely free to use Google all day long, and not buy a single product from any of their advertisers. ---
**Author:** ![Kedikat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed655f/32.png) [@Kedikat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kedikat)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2016, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-google-charged-us-each-time-we-used-it/762192/19 "2016-08-09T05:47:05Z")
> [@Martian Bigfoot](#): > > Yes, but this is borderline sophistry. You’re entirely free to use Google all day long, and not buy a single product from any of their advertisers. With the state of interconnected ownership of companies, it is likely that you are paying in some way. If you use a credit card for purchase then you certainly are. If you have a bank account, you probably are. No sophistry about it. The interconnected world. It is actually against the law in many places to directly charge a credit card user for the added fees incurred, and less for cash buyers. They must be passed onto all buyers, whatever payment method they use. Business likes communism when it is to their benefit. The more businesses that advertise on Google, the more chance you pay for it. Directly or through a subsidiary. ---
**Author:** ![Kedikat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed655f/32.png) [@Kedikat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kedikat)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2016, 5:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-google-charged-us-each-time-we-used-it/762192/20 "2016-08-09T05:58:20Z")
For instance. [http://www.wordstream.com/articles/google-earnings](http://www.wordstream.com/articles/google-earnings) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-google-charged-us-each-time-we-used-it/762192.md?page=2)