Yahoo!'s profit warning may mean bad news for Google.

Former Wall Street analyst Henry Blodget makes an obvious, but nonetheless important point on his Internet Outsider blog that both Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ:YHOO) and Google Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) are in the advertising business even though one is known for graphical banners and the other for search.

"In coming days, a parade of analysts will eloquently explain why the trends that are hobbling Yahoo! won't affect Google -- Google's revenue is pay-per-click, Google is a "must buy" for advertisers, Google has a much stronger market position, etc.,'' he writes. "Listen politely, but don't believe it."

Many don't agree with Blodget. RBC Capital Markets analyst Jordan Rohan told the New York Times that he doesn't see a link between Yahoo!'s problem and Google. He told the paper that Yahoo! has had "unusual turnover" among its executives, which may have hurt ad sales. Indeed, other sites including AOL and Ask.com aren't seeing a slowdown, according to the Times. The reason I agree with Blodget, who despite his notorioius past is one of the most astute observers of the Internet, is that Google's growth will come increasingly from branded advertisements, the core of Yahoo!'s business. I realize that's a bit ironic considering that Wall Street punishes Yahoo for not being more like Google in the search.

Google has long argued that search can be used to build awareness of brands.

Continue reading My take: Yahoo! warning may be trouble for Google

My take: Yahoo! warning may be trouble for Google originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 20 Sep 2006 16:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.