Ask HN: Would we be better off if web search was a public service?
If we view it this way, why are we not disgusted that individuals and companies can pay money for increased visibility in such a system via the AdWords platform? Why should we allow money to explicitly influence the information presented to us via Google Search? Would we allow libraries to show sponsored content when searching for books?
Of course, AdWords is Google's primary source of revenue, so we cannot separate this issue from the question of how Google could continue to survive as a pure search platform. Here's where I think we've been looking at this backwards.
We see search as just another business. I would argue that the technology to search the World Wide Web is, in essence, vital information infrastructure and a public service, and should not be subject to commercial influence; the only viable alternative I can see is funding the operation of Web search via taxpayer money, much like we fund the construction of roads, the operation of libraries, and so on.
I believe our current paradigm, that all web services are private businesses that must be monetized somehow, results from the inability of humanity to properly comprehend the massive importance of the network that we have created; we have neglected to consider the importance of public services within the context of the web. I believe that searching the web is one of the most fundamental technological public services that exists, and should be free of financial influence.