Google's customers are heavily influenced by the data that Google can provide to them. But lately, there has been less data.
What do Google Search Appliance, Google News & Weather, Reply, Tez, Google Goggles, Save to Google Chrome Extension, Encrypted Search, qpx-express-API, and Google Site Search have in common? All of these were services that Google killed (or will kill) in 2018 alone. The complete list of services that Google has or will kill include several services that I have used, including Google+, Google URL Shortener, Google Now, Picasa, Google Flu Trends, iGoogle, Google Reader, Google SMS, AdSense for Feeds, and Google Buzz. And, of course, a bunch of other services that I haven't used.
By Source (WP:NFCC#4), Fair use, Link
So as the data dries up, Google's customers are looking to places other than Google. And it's not just anecdotal:
In some cases, specific consumer-packaged brands have reportedly shifted half of their search ad budget from Google to Amazon.
Now, to be fair, Lauren Weinstein has noted that Google can't rely on its current customers forever, and is therefore looking for new sources of revenue.
Google knows that as time goes on their traditional advertising revenue model will become decreasingly effective. This is obviously one reason why they’ve been pivoting toward paid service models aimed at businesses and other organizations.
However, with Google's track record of sunsetting services, will corporate customers want to make the investment to switch to some Google service that may not be around a year or two from now?
