Is Google the prevailing IT force?

It is no surprise to any person who accesses the web at least once a day, that Google search page is the most visited of them all on the network. It has overtaken all existing sites, the estimated number of which is 1.7 billion in the world, according to websitehostingrating.com.

What is equally if not more fascinating, is that the second most visited site on the Internet is YouTube; just another Google online service! Add Gmail whose importance and role cannot be overstated, and the Android operating system, both by the same company, and the conclusion as to the weight Google plays in the world of IT, and simply in the world, becomes clear.

Naturally, the other GAFAM (Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon, Microsoft) members are also IT giants in their own right, and their impact on us all is perfectly acknowledged, but Google seems to be doing something the others are not.

It is also interesting to note that in the top ten list are six Chinese companies, versus four American, though again, the first two are American. Among the Chinese we find Tmall, Baidu and Tencent QQ, in 3rd, 4th and 5th position, respectively, just before Facebook that comes 6th.

In these days where working and studying remotely is the way to go, and where cloud storage has been widely accepted and adopted, even by those who, before the COVID-19 crisis, were the most sceptical and reluctant to trust the network with their personal and business data, are we to follow the most powerful one blindly?

“Don’t Put All your Eggs in One Basket” we are often told. Is this old advice valid in the IT and the Internet world?

Just last Monday September 28, and for a few hours, Microsoft 365 service was down for some of the users who were accessing it in the USA. The product, or the service as it is now referred to, is used by millions the world over. Although the issue was resolved in less than seven hours, a huge number of subscribers in the USA region felt the frustration.

As great and as omnipresent and powerful as Google may be — I for one, happily make daily and intensive use of all their services — common sense should always prevail. The old saying about all the eggs in one basket is as valid as ever. I would say it is even more valid in the online world, because of its inherent virtual and intangible attributes.

On a practical level, however, it is not simple or possible to have a Plan B for every aspect of our living with the network. You can, of course, have an e-mail account other than your Gmail, as an extra precaution, but surely you cannot replace your YouTube channel where you uploaded some videos for your friends or relatives to enjoy. There is simply no alternative for the amazing video channel. Just remember all that they let you upload, and for free, what’s more. Apart from posted videos, YouTube is now slowly replacing some regular satellite TV broadcasts.

Similarly, it would not be practical to operate an Android smartphone and an Apple iPhone at the same time, just to have your back covered. In the end you must trust one of them, for convenience.

Despite unavoidable criticism here and there, from time to time, overall the services and products delivered to us by GAFAM are helpful and useful. Last week I had to call Amazon to fix an error with my Prime subscription. I called thinking that they would never really answer the phone, given the huge size of their operation. I was wrong. A computer spoke to me at first, and after a couple of questions and answers, I specifically asked to speak to a person. The computer obliged and connected me to a real and courteous person who solved my problem in two minutes.

As dominant in the top ten as Google may be, the company is smart enough to take into consideration the presence of the others and to keep working well and as ethically as possible. In the prestigious list, the Chinese IT giants, in particular, certainly are not to underestimate.