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March 29, 2005

Google Buys Urchin

Whoa. This has the potential to be huge. Google's insatiable appetite for gobbling up smaller businesses continues with their purchase of web analytics firm Urchin (for 30 million US, according to word from John Battelle).

Google already has a pretty nice web analytics program that they let AdWords advertisers use for free. Their purchase of Urchin could take the web analytics capabilities for AdWords advertisers to a whole new level, and, if Google continues to make it a free service (as an incentive for using AdWords), it would go a long way towards making web analytics a commodity. This has to make other web analytics providers a bit nervous.

More importantly, I'm sure Yahoo/Overture's feeling a bit nervous as well. Anyone whose used their ad campaign management/tracking software knows it's no miracle of usability.

By folding Urchin's technology into Google's existing free web analytics package, Google could create a huge incentive for advertisers to join their AdWords program, and to switch away from other PPCs like Overture. There's no need for Google to charge for use of their new Urchin-ized software, since the gain in revenues they would realize from an increase in PPC market share would dwarf anything they would get from selling web analytics services.

I've always found Urchin's $495 US a month per domain to be a bit steep, and I'm looking forward to seeing what Google does with it.

Here's a copy of the email we got from Urchin this morning:

Great news! Google has announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Urchin Software Corporation. Google plans to offer Urchin to advertisers and web site owners to enable them to increase their advertising return on investment and make their web sites more effective.

You will continue to get the award-winning Urchin technology and support you've come to expect. We strongly believe this will result in more successful web marketing for our users. Most of all, we will continue, with Google's support, to develop innovative web analytics products. We have already released great new features in Urchin 6 On Demand including to date lifetime campaign metrics, geotargeting, site overlay reports and much more. If you haven't already done so, please consider signing up for a free 15 day trial at
https://secure.urchin.com/on_demand/.

Both Urchin and Google believe that by teaming up we can make it easier for businesses of all sizes to succeed on the Internet. Together we can provide more powerful solutions that are also easier to use. We hope you're as excited about this as we are. Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns. You can read the press release about the acquisition at
http://www.urchin.com.

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