
Google inserts links to its Duo video chat app when users text about Zoom - tomduncalf
https://www.inputmag.com/tech/google-adds-sketchy-duo-link-when-zoom-is-mentioned-on-android
======
antr
Many of Google's recent market practices feel very much like those of
Microsoft in the late 90's, early 2000's. Producing unappealing products, and
trying to use their influence to (unsuccessfully) deter users from switching
to comeptition.

Search is to Google what Windows was/is to Microsoft then, their core
business, but all other efforts/products/services seemed fringy.

~~~
aguyfromnb
> _Search is to Google what Windows was /is to Microsoft then, their core
> business, but all other efforts/products/services seemed fringy._

How did the rest of the story go, though? Microsoft now has a growing suite of
great products that are no longer "fringe".

There's some middle ground between practices like this article and preventing
companies from innovating in spaces outside their core business.

~~~
101404
The Dancing Monkey left the company, after that Microsoft got better.

~~~
wayneftw
After he doubled the company profits during his tenure.

I guess if you have nothing really valuable to say, resort to name calling
though am I right?

~~~
101404
The topic was why Microsoft's products now are so much better than they used
to be in the late 90s and early 00s. The reason was, that Ballmer left the
company. Sure he doubled the profits... by selling crap using shady methods.

So, what are you upset about? Because I used his commonly understood nick name
to say it?

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mikeflynn
Was their only evidence the screenshot they included? It’s seems more likely
that Google could have been looking for phrases like “Let’s look at it” rather
than the term “Zoom”.

~~~
karaterobot
Right. Another thing is that it's not clear whether they're inserting an
advertisement into the conversation in a way that's visible to the other
person, or if they're only trying to bring up on-screen help for the local
user. The former seems much, much more intrusive than the latter. I'd still
like the option to turn off either of them, but I don't really consider
Clippy-esque eagerness to be sinister as much as presumptuous and annoying.

~~~
KukicAdnan
That's exactly what it is. In the Messages app if you enable Assistant
Suggestions it'll usually give you quick replies based on the context of the
conversation and sometimes offer app suggestions like set a calendar event or
make a call. And you can turn it off if you don't want it.

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pbnjay
I've had multiple instances of scheduling Zoom meetings where GSuite
automatically added a Meet link also. Had to send a fix to attendees the first
time and caught it the next few times before I sent the invites. Very annoying
practice and I couldn't find any obvious way to turn it off.

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roland35
I still feel too burned by Reader to invest in another tool by Google!

~~~
ajayyy
Don't forget that they deleted all Google+ data when they shut it down. And
that was not a small service

~~~
benatkin
To add insult to injury, they show their standard 404 message when I click a
link to an old Google+ post.

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KukicAdnan
It didn't add a link to the conversation for the other user. It's a Google
Assistant suggestion feature in the Messages app that tries to be helpful by
providing intentful snippets you can one-click reply with. And if you don't
want the suggestions you can turn them off.

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dewey
I flagged this and not because I'm a Google fanboy (quite the opposite) but
because this seems like a classic case of fakenews clickbait that's based on a
misunderstanding of someone's screenshot.

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baud147258
Not that different from Windows 10 proposing to use the new Edge version when
starting a browser (it also happened with Firefox & Opera) via the start menu.

[https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EPD13_oX0AEnhTb?format=png&name=...](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EPD13_oX0AEnhTb?format=png&name=small)

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shrikant
Has anyone here been able to reproduce this? I've just tried this with someone
else who has Duo installed as well, and I've got all the fancy suggestions
things turned on, and wasn't able to get this suggestion.

Might be worth waiting for a few more reputable sources to confirm that this
is actually replicable before sharpening the pitchforks...

~~~
hysan
As with most features, this could be part of an A/B Test which makes
confirming it difficult.

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corobo
Sorry for offtopic.. is that really the gif they're marketing Duo with?

The Duo side of the screen looks awful quality compared to the other side!

~~~
Eridrus
Yeah, the gif is terrible... the AV1 side is on the left....
[https://www.blog.google/products/duo/4-new-google-duo-
featur...](https://www.blog.google/products/duo/4-new-google-duo-features-
help-you-stay-connected/)

~~~
corobo
Ahhh! Unfortunate watermark positioning that

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est31
Not the first time where a large chat platform exploits its market share.
Whatsapp for example used to un-highlight telegram links.

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Signez
How isn't this textbook abuses of dominant position?

~~~
jimbob45
The textbook anti-competition case, US v. Microsoft, was thrown out at the end
of the day and settled. There is effectively no anti-competition oversight in
the US.

~~~
est31
The US has a history of breaking up monopolies. Think of Standard Oil or Bell
breakup. Usually when they react they react late, but when they do it, they
make sure they don't have to come back again, as in they are very thorough
with their breakup.

~~~
yellow_postit
Not sure about that, MaBell has essentially reassembled itself.

~~~
est31
How so? AT&T is a big carrier but it doesn't have near the size of the Bell
system, no?

~~~
rrrrrrrrrrrryan
We still don't have a full-blown monopoly like we used to, but there's been
considerable consolidation in the industry over the years. The T-Mobile/Sprint
merger is the latest example.

Article from a few years back:
[https://www.theverge.com/2016/10/24/13389592/att-time-
warner...](https://www.theverge.com/2016/10/24/13389592/att-time-warner-
merger-breakup-bell-system-chart)

There are massive economic incentives to consolidate infrastructure-like
industries, hence why infrastructure is often nationalized, pseudo-
nationalized, or heavily regulated.

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sigmar
Isn't "Google Assistant suggestions" opt-in? Seems like a good idea to turn it
off if you don't want Google's suggestions

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londons_explore
I can't reproduce this.

Can anyone else? What's the trigger?

~~~
arjunnarayan
The trigger was the "let's look at this" phrase, not the "Join zoom" phrase.
This is similar to when you say "where are you": it prompts the other person
to share location (also on Android).

This article is misleading.

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llagerlof
What Google needs is to allow quick and easy creation of rooms and invite
links, no requested login whatsoever, just a single textbox to fill your name.
Just make it easy like Zoom, or even easier for Christ sake. I am not a multi-
billionaire company and even I know this is basic.

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qppo
How does Google know the person on the other end is on an android phone with
Duo installed?

~~~
jabroni_salad
Same as any other messenger app, by grabbing your contact list. When you open
Duo it will show you a list of your contacts that are duo-able.

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suddenexample
This prompt appears in many, many contexts - whenever the ML model decides
that a Duo prompt is useful. These "smart suggestions" aren't sent in the chat
to both parties, and have been around for quite some time. Maybe Google
decided to retrain their models specifically to target Zoom, and maybe they
didn't. Whatever the case, this issue is blown so much out of proportion. This
place is starting to remind me of Reddit.

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anoncoward1337
Someone must be going for a promotion in H2.

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ARandomerDude
Good. Zoom needs a competitor, especially given their very shady practices
(backdoor servers, routing traffic through China, etc.).

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layoutIfNeeded
Nice!

Waiting for the HN-regular Googlers responses.

