Google Sends Expedia Packing in Search Rankings

Google frowns on websites trying to game its search results — and Expedia appears to have gotten that memo a bit late.

The online travel agency has seen its page rankings drop 25% for travel-related searches on Google in recent days, according to Searchmetrics, a search-engine research firm. Losing that much visibility in search rankings almost guarantees a drop in traffic of at least 20% to Expedia, says Marcus Tober, Searchmetrics's founder and president. Such a rapid, sharp drop suggests that Google is penalizing the company for so-called "unnatural links" to Expedia.com that are posted on many travel blogs and other websites. Read more...