Google harvard business case

9-910-036
REV. FEBRUARY 12, 2010

BENJAMIN EDELMAN THOMAS R. EISENMANN

Go oogle In nc.
Go oogle’s mission is to organize the world’s inf n nformation and make it unive d ersally accessib and useful. ble — Google’s mission state ement In January 2010 Google lau 0, unched the Ne exus One mo obile device— elegant to —an ouch-screen p phone that a added compr rehensive voi recognitio to reducedependence on keyboar ice on e e rd-style text e entry. Since the fall of 20 008, Google’s Android ope erating system had power various m m red mobile phones. But Google had extend its role w ded with Nexus O One: Google designed the phone and planned to sell it e direct to consum tly mers. Was ther any limit to Google’s asp re o pirations? Go oogle, based in Mountain V i View, Califor rnia, hadgros revenues o $21.2 billion and an oper ss of n rating incom of $5.5 billion in 2008. A of year-end 2008, the co me As d ompany had 20,164 emplo oyees and cash and h equiv valents of $8.7 billion. (Exh 7 hibit 1 shows Google finan ncials from 19 999–2008.) Founded in 199 the 99, company complete its IPO in August 2004 at $85 per share. Google’s share price exceeded $6 in ed 4 e 600 Janua 2010,givi ary ing the comp pany a $189 b billion marke value. Mea et anwhile, Google.com enjoy yed a 65.6% share of all U.S. searche in Novem % l es mber 2009; Ya ahoo.com, its closest rival had just 17 s l, 7.5%.1 (Exhib 2 outlines trends in se bit s earch engine market share Outside th United Sta e.) he ates, Google’s lead s was e even larger, exceeding a 90% share of s e search querie in numeroucountries. (Exhibit 3 re es us eports marke shares by country.) et c Sin its IPO, Google had la nce G aunched a flu urry of produ ucts that exp panded its do omain beyond web d search These inclu h. uded Gmail, Google Map Google Bo ps, ooks, Google Finance, Goo ogle Docs, G Google Calen ndar, Google Checkout, an more. Ac nd cquisitions of YouTube an DoubleClick had expa f nd anded Google’s presence inonline vid and display advertisin These initi deo ng. iatives fueled speculation about d Google’s strategic objectives. P Products like Gmail and F Finance, along with person g nalization fea atures offere on Google home pag moved th company t ed e’s ge, he toward porta like Yahoo and Micro als o! osoft’s MSN. Book Searc Maps, an Checkout suggested that Google was enterin the traditional . ch, ndt ng strong gholds of e-commerce gia ants like eBay and Amazo Finally, Google’s ad-su y on. upported soft tware, includ ding email, ca alendaring, an document nd t-managemen systems, threatened Mic nt crosoft’s Offic and ce Wind dows offerings. These man services an diverse co ny nd ompetitors rai ised the ques stion: What sh hould Google do next?

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Professo Thomas R. Eisen or nmann and Smita Bakshi, Sebastien B Briens, and Shailen ndra Singh (MBA 2 2004) wrote the or riginal version of th case, his “Google Inc.” 804-141. It was replaced by “ e “Google Inc.” 806-105 prepared by P Professor Thomas R. Eisenmann and Senior Researche Kerry d er Herman GlobalResearch Group, which is now being replac n, h ced by this version prepared by Pro n ofessors Benjamin Edelman and Tho omas R. Eisenma ann. This case was developed from p s published sources. HBS cases are de . eveloped solely as the basis for class discussion. Cases are not s s intended to serve as endor d rsements, sources o primary data, or illustrations of effe of ective or ineffective management.e ght nt Harvard College. T order copies or request permission to reproduce mat To n terials, call 1-800-5 545-7685, Copyrig © 2010 Presiden and Fellows of H write H Harvard Business Sc chool Publishing, B Boston, MA 02163, or go to http://w , www.hbsp.harvard d.edu. This publica ation may not be d digitized, photoco opied, or otherwise reproduced, poste or transmitted, w ed, without the permis...