Is Google a media owner or a technology company? According to Sir Martin Sorrell,
The co-founder and CEO of WPP, the world’s largest marketing and advertising company, Google is a “media owner masquerading as a technology company.”
The straight-talking Sorrell made this controversial observation in his annual state-of-the-union talk at Stream, WPP’s unconference held each year just outside Athens. And when I sat down with Sir Martin after his speech, we explored what he described as “the highly productive” relationship between WPP, the world’s largest communications company, and Google, the world’s largest technology company.
So is Sorrell correct – is Google really a media owner rather than technology company? And if it is, then should Google be required to behave as a media owner and be much more transparent about the way in which its technology favors its own content?
Sir Martin Sorrell has been Group Chief Executive Officer of WPP Group PLC of Grey Global Group Inc. since its founding in 1986. Sorrell started his career as Marketing Associate of Glendinning Associates of Westport, Connecticut. In 1997, he was appointed as Ambassador of British Business by the Foreign & Commonwealth Office and subsequently appointed to the Office’s Panel 2000 aimed at rebranding Britain abroad. In 1999, he was appointed by the Secretary of State for Education and Employment...
Andrew Keen is an Anglo-American entrepreneur, writer, broadcaster and public speaker. He is the author of the international hit “Cult of the Amateur: How the Internet is Killing our Culture” which has been published in 17 different languages and was short-listed for the Higham’s Business Technology Book of the Year award. As a pioneering Silicon Valley based Internet entrepreneur, Andrew founded Audiocafe.com in 1995 and built it into a popular first generation Internet music company. He is currently the...
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