Is that a real business risk or just something that makes good headlines?
Afuah: I think there’s a real risk. People who read these stories are Google customers. If people don’t trust you or what you do, that can create big problems down the line. I think that’s another area where Google should spend more time trying to explain things to people. That’s almost as important as trying to find new business models. Remember, some people were very upset to hear about the computer program that scans through Gmail to look for key words to know what kind of advertising to present. People thought somebody was reading their email. But really, a computer does that. No human being reads the mail. You have to let people know that. Google has to explain things very well to people. They need to say, “We understand where you’re coming from, but this is how we’re trying to make money. If we don’t do that, we can’t provide you with this free service.” They need more of that. What about Microsoft? Do they suffer from some of the same issues Google has? Afuah: Even though Google
