There have been plenty of rumors that revenue growth is slowing at Google (NASDAQ: GOOG). The company appears to be subletting some of its office space in New York City. Sites that use the search firm's AdSense program say CPMs are falling.
The temptation is to believe that Google cannot survive a recession without some sort of earnings damage. The stock certainly trades that way as it sits at $257, down from a 52-week high of $724.80.
The firm added some fuel to the speculation. According to The Wall Street Journal, "Google Inc. said Monday that it is "significantly" reducing the number of contract workers it uses, but the Internet search and advertising company said it has no plans at this time to lay off employees." The firm's Q3 filings shows that Google has 10,000 contractors
Leaving aside the fact that another part of the economy is taking an employment hit, if Google's remarkable revenue run is over, it says that the cycle for making huge and growing sums of money on the search business may have ended after only five or six years. The great engine of internet expansion may be becoming mature.
Since Web 2.0 -- especially operations like YouTube and MySpace -- has not shown real promise for being a big money maker, the next act for the online world may be failing just as the last act is drawing to a close.
Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.
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