[mikece]

So... the problem isn't that Google search isn't good but that (1) the ads sold are many and to some people who are scammers, and (2) enough of how the search engine algorithm works has become common knowledge and exploited by SEO experts seeking to inflate the relevance of sites by using what they know of how Google ranks search results.

But for this to become a problem Google first had to come up with a system better than everyone else's.

Sounds like a classic dilemma to me.

[blihp]

No, the schemes being used are decidedly low tech for the most part and trivially detectable. Google's result quality isn't dying a death of a thousand cuts due to hordes of disreputable actors, it's dying a death of Google being dependent on a small basket of sleazy companies that they're economically in bed with.

[Ferret7446]

If it's trivially detectable, you could enlighten all of us on how you do it.