Is Google’s Ranking System Legal?
Information Today, Vol. 23, No. 6, p. 17, June 2006
3 Pages Posted: 10 Jul 2010
Date Written: June 2006
Abstract
I first used an electronic database search engine in 1982. I was a law student and our school had just installed a Lexis terminal (about the size of a desk). I learned about Boolean search commands and selecting search terms to find relevant items that had those terms. For students and those of us in the information industry this is a typical first exposure to search engines.
For the broad spectrum of the population, however, their first exposure to a search engine is trying to find information on the Internet. Internet search engines are designed to be a bit easier than commercial database search engines. Simply enter in a few key terms - no Boolean connectors necessary - and up come the most relevant results. But a recent lawsuit against Google over search results points out that relevance may not be the only factor defining your results.
Keywords: antitrust laws, communications laws, lawsuits, Google, Kinderstart, information industry, search results, Internet search engines, ranking systems, search terms, blocking, Websites, First Amendment, trade secrets
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