Popular search Google harms consumers by distorting search results. Such results came in the study, Michael Luca of Harvard business school and Tim Wu from Columbia law faculty of the University. According to their conclusion, Google is often promoted via search results to your own online resources and services that distorts the real picture for the users.

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Popular search Google harms consumers by distorting search results. Such results came in the study, Michael Luca of Harvard business school and Tim Wu from Columbia law faculty of the University. According to their conclusion, Google is often promoted via search results to your own online resources and services that distorts the real picture for the users.

Many users when searching reviews and ratings of any products or establishments (restaurants, hotels, etc.) are used primarily to "ask" Google it. However, researchers believe that the displayed search engine results are not entirely objective that has a direct impact on users, notes The Wall Street Journal.

To prove their theory, the researchers showed a group of volunteers two screenshots: one of them depicts the actual results of a search query, the second results that might appear if "honest" work the Google algorithm. Not surprisingly, the majority of volunteers felt more useful links from the second screenshot, there are those that are normally "hidden" promoted for Google services.

"simply put, when it comes to local search, Google provides its users with a degraded version of its search engine", — mark Luke and Wu. However, it is worth considering that the sponsor of the study was to Yelp, which owns the eponymous service to search for local services market, such as restaurants or Barber shops, with the ability to add and view ratings and reviews of these services.

the Fact that Google often promotes its own services, raises questions not only of individual researchers but also more competent authorities — for example, the anti-monopoly Commission of the European Union.