Many Sites Hurt By Recent Changes In Google's Algorithm

[mandy]

Answers.com CEO Bob Rosenschein revealed this week that his site lost 28% of its traffic in a week, thanks to a change in Google's indexing algorithms. That news should send a shiver down the spine of anyone who depends on the search engine for traffic and revenue.

And, as it turns out, Answers.com isn't the only site suffering from a traffic drop: Technorati's reach of internet users, as measured by Alexa, is also down by 25% in the last two weeks...

full article: http://blog.wired.com/business/2007/08/g...eth-g.html

Press release issued by Answers.com in response to the traffic drop:

Answers Corporation (NASDAQ: ANSW) announced today that, due to a search engine algorithmic adjustment by Google, Answers.com has seen a drop in search engine traffic starting last week. As a result, overall traffic is currently down approximately 28% from levels immediately prior to the change.

"We are working diligently to analyze and address the recent algorithm change," said Bob Rosenschein, CEO. "We will update investors on the financial impact of this development during our upcoming Q2 earnings conference call on August 13."

"The major search engines modify their algorithms all the time," added Mr. Rosenschein. "This change only demonstrates the sound business rationale behind our agreement to purchase Dictionary.com, because it underscores a primary motivation for the deal: to secure a steady source of direct traffic and mitigate our current dependence on search engine algorithms. On a pro forma basis, we expect at least 70% of our total traffic to come from people navigating directly to our Web properties or typing the term 'dictionary' in a search engine. We remain optimistic and look forward to completing this transformative acquisition. As we work to restore normal traffic levels to Answers.com, we are confident that our efforts will result in a stronger and more valuable company."

full press release: http://ir.answers.com//releaseDetail.cfm...eID=258141