Google’s Future Strategic Move: Acquiring Quora

As we look into the digital landscape, the integration of two major players, Google and Quora, is becoming increasingly compelling. This article explores the feasibility of Google acquiring Quora and the strategic importance this move could have for the future of the digital information landscape.

Is Google Interested in Buying Quora?

Ultimately, I don’t believe that Google has made a serious attempt to buy Quora. If they were, the acquisition would need to address unique elements that Quora has built. Google, being a giant in the tech world, has already developed or can easily replicate many of the features Quora offers.

Unique Features of Quora:
While Quora has gathered quite a bit of social network content, it is not unique. Other platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, and Medium have also amassed large user bases and content. Furthermore, Quora's strengths in machine learning models, such as error detection in user input and semantic question equivalence, could be developed by Google on its own.

Google’s Strategy and the Declining Web Landscape

The web has been a cornerstone for Google's mission to organize the world’s information. However, the very nature of the web is changing. More and more, high-quality content creation is becoming scarce. This is primarily due to the fact that without aggressive promotion, no one can be found. Even if promoted, the quality of information found is often questionable.

Decline in Web Content Quality:
Despite significant advancements in Google’s technology, massive resources, and user data, the quality of search results has drastically deteriorated. This decline is alarming considering the potential of Google’s current capabilities. It highlights the need for Google to invest in maintaining high-quality content sources.

Why Google Might Consider Acquiring Quora

As of late 2019, it is becoming increasingly likely that Google will have to consider an acquisition of Quora. Here’s why:

Strategic Content Repository: Quora’s curated and carefully cultivated collection of questions and answers can serve as a valuable repository for high-quality content. Machine Learning Models: The two models Quora has developed, for error detection and semantic question equivalence, can be seen as potential assets for Google. Search Engine Results: A large portion of Quora’s content, such as top-ranked answers, is already embedded within Google’s search results. If Quora is a better source of information, Google stands to gain significant advertising revenue.

The price for such an acquisition could be significantly higher than Quora’s most recent valuation of $2 billion. Google’s Financial analysts might dispute this, as the current Quora revenues seem marginal. However, if Google could secure Quora as a greater source for quality content, the potential advertising revenue could far outweigh the current valuation.

Therefore, if Quora retains its unique value and can provide better content, the acquiring price could be over $10 billion, which would be a fair market value considering the quality it brings to Google's search results.

Conclusion

Given the declining quality of web content and the strategic importance of having a better source of quality information, Google’s acquisition of Quora seems likely in the near future. While Google has the capability to create similar features without Quora, the unique value Quora brings to search results makes it a prime target for Google's strategic considerations.