Google click-through numbers spark debate

New data confirming slowing growth in Google Inc.'s paid clicks has renewed debate in the investment community over whether the internet search company's revenue can quickly adjust to changes it made in how it generates clicks.

Google, which gets paid when users click on a sponsored ad that comes up as the result of a Google search, has reported steadily rising per-click revenue.

But citing the latest data that ComScore Inc. released earlier this week, analysts said growth in Google's click-through rate has nearly ground to a halt. The click-through rate grew three per cent in February compared to a year earlier, and January saw no increase compared to January 2007.

Several months earlier, the rate was growing 25 per cent to 40 per cent compared to a year earlier. The new data is in line with click-through declines Google reported last quarter.
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