Google: A monopoly that's advertising!

Everyone's talking about it, sharing it and tearing up! Google's new commercial called 'Reunion' for their product 'Google Search' in India, is heartwarming to say the least.  (In case you haven't seen it yet, here's the link : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBObRiTsIPM)

Scripted beautifully, it touches the raw nerve of every Indian and Pakistani, reminding us that at the end of it all, what happened during the partition was that friends and family had been brutally torn apart. The ad though, focuses on the fact that even pieces of fabric that have been shredded, can be mended like there never was a tear. Even the product placement in the ad is brilliant- with Google search being used extensively to answer just about any question that one could have!

Beautiful, amazing and heartwarming as this ad maybe, it made me wonder why a company having almost a monopoly in the category was advertising!

Why advertise a product that is not only the leader (for want of a more powerful word) in the category but has almost decimated competition? Why create a three and a half minute video for a product that has replaced the descriptor of the category? (Who, after all, says let's run an internet search for it? Isn't the term 'Google' it?!) Here are some facts on Google India's search product, that make these questions valid.

• Google has a market share of about 97% in the search engine category. It forms the largest part of Google's pie in Asia as of today. 
• Vis-a-vis competition, Google is way ahead in the game, with the likes of Yahoo coming in at a poor second!
• Go to any website, and you will find Google's search product rules the roost in India

http://www.covario.com

These stats almost make Google look like a monopoly player in the search engine category. So why then is a player like Google investing in an ad campaign like this? (The obvious answer of not being complacent doesn't validate the need for an ad campaign)

Here are some of the reasons that, I believe, may have lead to an ad campaign for the geography

• India is the third largest consumer of the internet with 137 million users (after China and USA), yet only 11% of its population is online (compared to 42% and 78% of the first two). Without a doubt, Google is targeting the potential customers coming from the remaining 89% who still remain 'offline' so to speak. Through this ad campaign, Google firmly establishes the fact that there is an answer for every question you have to ask, thus making life easier and saving time. Indeed there have been other campaigns, also communicating this message.
• India alone contributes to almost 10% to Google's site traffic world over. Yet Yahoo India's (though way behind in terms of market share as of today), contribution to the overall Yahoo pie is strong at 9.3%. Bing's traffic from India is about 5.2%, Ask.com overshoots this at 7%. All these numbers reinforce what everyone believes- that India's consumption of the internet is growing exponentially. Ignoring a market with such a growth rate could be disastrous for any player and leaves little room for complacency. 
• Another way of looking at this move to advertise is to look at Google search as the gateway to many of it's other products. Google now gives results that are derived from its own services first, for ex. if you search for a product, as part of the results you also get an option to shop for it on Google itself! So another reason for advertising the search product could be the resulting piggyback ride for other related products from the Google stable!

As much as I enjoyed watching a well crafted advertisement from one of the largest and most admired companies in the world, I am curious as to how this ad is going to benefit Google. Will its market shares go from 97% to 99%? Will the demand for some of its other products rise? Will Google's Top of Mind scores increase (if thats even possible!)? Nonetheless, for an ad buff like me, the ad surely was a treat!

Related article: http://forbesindia.com/article/real-issue/is-google-gobbling-up-the-indian-internet-space/35641/0