Free Web site therapy–Google gives away analytics
Mon Nov 14, 2005 03:05 AM ET
By Eric Auchard

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov 14 (Reuters) – Google Inc. (GOOG.O: Quote, Profile, Research) plans to give away a set of analytic tools allowing Web developers, administrators and advertisers to fine-tune their sites including advertising, the Web search leader said on Sunday.

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"Any time we add more measurability and more control, advertisers understand more of what they are doing and they end up spending more," said Paul Muret, the Google engineering director who co-founded its analytics service.

Google’s offering is based on Urchin Web Analytics, which it acquired in March for undisclosed terms and then cut the price to $199 a month for the service from $400 previously.

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"Google is giving away free software to improve Web sites. I fail to see how some of these Web analyst vendors could not be hurt by this," Jupiter Research analyst Eric Peterson said of the impact on the estimated $450 million-a-year industry.