Google is Web 2.0 is Google?

A while ago, Paul Kedrosky was looking for good Web 2.0 companies to short in the event of a bubble. The first company listed was Google, and I definitely had my doubts: Google is in the very 1.0 business of search-and-ads, and is exploring other businesses. But those other businesses are all more or less venture-stage: Advertising is still 99% of Google's revenue.

Apparently, I was wrong, and Web 2.0 is "All About Google". Now, that column is all speculation, analogy, and froth -- the usual "The Revolution is at hand!" declarations you see whenever a tech company's stock price, financial statements, and brand recognition are all rocketing up the same breathtaking exponential curve. But here's some more convincing evidence: Google has just bought out an online spreadsheet company entirely to make them stop offering online spreadsheets. That's not the behavior of just-another-company in a huge market. That's only economically viable for a near-monopolist. Maybe Google really is Web 2.0 after all.