Google "Beginning of the Backlash?"

John Battelle and Fred Wilson both post today on the beginnings of a percieved backlash against Google.

The timing of these types of opinions coming forth and the new AdWords Terms of Service are interesting, and my previous post regarding the new "no 3rd party apps" terms of service generated a lot of comments both here and at the BetterPPC Blog. Many, many small companies have been working on applications for AdWords that use the API since it was released in January and now are worried that the effort will be for naught.

Is Google going to be the next Microsoft, a giant predatory that wants anything and everything for itself and exacts a toll on all connected with it?

Or do they intend the more modern (and moderate) approach of encouraging many 3rd party apps to flourish around the search engine and ad platform (and gmail and maps and base and ...). Seems like this would be a more "enlightened" and also more profitable long term approach.

As a follow up to this story, the "AdWords Evangelist", Google Employee Patrick Chanezon has posted a response (warning: not very enlightening). Meanwhile the "Commercial API" appears slated for release on January 1, 2006.

Seems ironic now, but we are actually now eagerly awaiting the release of MSN AdCenter and revamping of Yahoo SEM! - let the market forces begin!