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{{short description|Change to Google's search results ranking algorithm}}
{{short description|Change to Google's search results ranking algorithm}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2014}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2014}}
'''Google Panda''' is a major change to [[Google]]'s search results ranking algorithm that was first released in February 2011. The change aimed to lower the rank of "low-quality sites" or "thin sites",<ref name="SearchEngineLand">{{cite web|url=https://searchengineland.com/how-google-panda-places-updates-created-a-rollercoaster-ride-for-iyp-traffic-101683|title=How Google Panda & Places Updates Created A Rollercoaster Ride For IYP Traffic|publisher=[[SearchEngineLand]]|accessdate=April 11, 2018}}</ref> in particular "[[content farms]]",<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|url=https://www.oreilly.com/ideas/media-in-the-age-of-algorithms|title=Media in the age of algorithms|last=O'Reilly|first=Tim|date=2016-11-16|newspaper=O'Reilly Media|access-date=2016-11-17}}</ref> and return higher-quality sites near the top of the search results.
'''Google Panda''' is a major change to [[Google]]'s search results ranking algorithm that was first released in February 2011. The change aimed to lower the rank of "low-quality sites" or "thin sites",<ref name="Search Engine Land">{{cite web|url=https://searchengineland.com/how-google-panda-places-updates-created-a-rollercoaster-ride-for-iyp-traffic-101683|title=How Google Panda & Places Updates Created A Rollercoaster Ride For IYP Traffic|publisher=[[Search Engine Land]]|accessdate=April 11, 2018}}</ref> in particular "[[content farms]]",<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|url=https://www.oreilly.com/ideas/media-in-the-age-of-algorithms|title=Media in the age of algorithms|last=O'Reilly|first=Tim|date=2016-11-16|newspaper=O'Reilly Media|access-date=2016-11-17}}</ref> and return higher-quality sites near the top of the search results.


[[CNET]] reported a surge in the rankings of [[news websites]] and [[social networking service|social networking sites]], and a drop in rankings for sites containing large amounts of advertising.<ref>{{Citation|url=http://news.cnet.com/8301-31921_3-20054797-281.html|title=Testing Google's Panda algorithm: CNET analysis|publisher=[[CNET.com]]|date=April 18, 2011}}</ref> This change reportedly affected the rankings of almost 12 percent of all search results.<ref name="wired">{{Citation|title=TED 2011: The 'Panda' That Hates Farms: A Q&A With Google’s Top Search Engineers|url=https://www.wired.com/epicenter/2011/03/the-panda-that-hates-farms|publisher=[[Wired.com]]|date=March 3, 2011}}</ref> Soon after the Panda rollout, many websites, including Google's webmaster forum, became filled with complaints of [[Scraper site|scrapers]]/copyright infringers getting better rankings than sites with original content. At one point, Google publicly asked for data points to help detect scrapers better.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://searchenginewatch.com/article/2105023/Google-Losing-War-With-Scraper-Sites-Asks-For-Help|title=Google Losing War With Scraper Sites, Asks For Help|publisher=Search Engine Watch}}</ref> In 2016, [[Matt Cutts]], Google's head of webspam at the time of the Panda update, commented that "with Panda, Google took a big enough revenue hit via some partners that Google actually needed to disclose Panda as a material impact on an earnings call. But I believe it was the right decision to launch Panda, both for the long-term trust of our users and for a better ecosystem for publishers."<ref name=":0" />
[[CNET]] reported a surge in the rankings of [[news websites]] and [[social networking service|social networking sites]], and a drop in rankings for sites containing large amounts of advertising.<ref>{{Citation|url=http://news.cnet.com/8301-31921_3-20054797-281.html|title=Testing Google's Panda algorithm: CNET analysis|publisher=[[CNET.com]]|date=April 18, 2011}}</ref> This change reportedly affected the rankings of almost 12 percent of all search results.<ref name="wired">{{Citation|title=TED 2011: The 'Panda' That Hates Farms: A Q&A With Google’s Top Search Engineers|url=https://www.wired.com/epicenter/2011/03/the-panda-that-hates-farms|publisher=[[Wired.com]]|date=March 3, 2011}}</ref> Soon after the Panda rollout, many websites, including Google's webmaster forum, became filled with complaints of [[Scraper site|scrapers]]/copyright infringers getting better rankings than sites with original content. At one point, Google publicly asked for data points to help detect scrapers better.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://searchenginewatch.com/article/2105023/Google-Losing-War-With-Scraper-Sites-Asks-For-Help|title=Google Losing War With Scraper Sites, Asks For Help|publisher=[[Search Engine Watch]]}}</ref> In 2016, [[Matt Cutts]], Google's head of webspam at the time of the Panda update, commented that "with Panda, Google took a big enough revenue hit via some partners that Google actually needed to disclose Panda as a material impact on an earnings call. But I believe it was the right decision to launch Panda, both for the long-term trust of our users and for a better ecosystem for publishers."<ref name=":0" />


Google's Panda received several updates after the original rollout in February 2011, and their effect went global in April 2011. To help affected publishers, Google provided an advisory on its blog,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://googlewebmastercentral.blogspot.com/2012/04/another-step-to-reward-high-quality.html|title=Another step to reward high-quality sites|publisher=Official Google Webmaster Central Blog}}</ref> thus giving some direction for self-evaluation of a website's quality. Google has provided a list of 23 bullet points on its blog answering the question of "What counts as a high-quality site?" that is supposed to help webmasters "step into Google's mindset".<ref name="Google">{{cite web|publisher=[[Google]]|url=http://googlewebmastercentral.blogspot.com/2011/05/more-guidance-on-building-high-quality.html|title=More guidance on building high-quality sites|accessdate=April 11, 2018}}</ref>
Google's Panda received several updates after the original rollout in February 2011, and their effect went global in April 2011. To help affected publishers, Google provided an advisory on its blog,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://googlewebmastercentral.blogspot.com/2012/04/another-step-to-reward-high-quality.html|title=Another step to reward high-quality sites|publisher=Official Google Webmaster Central Blog}}</ref> thus giving some direction for self-evaluation of a website's quality. Google has provided a list of 23 bullet points on its blog answering the question of "What counts as a high-quality site?" that is supposed to help webmasters "step into Google's mindset".<ref name="Google">{{cite web|publisher=[[Google]]|url=http://googlewebmastercentral.blogspot.com/2011/05/more-guidance-on-building-high-quality.html|title=More guidance on building high-quality sites|accessdate=April 11, 2018}}</ref>
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The Google Panda patent (patent 8,682,892), filed on September 28, 2012, was granted on March 25, 2014. The patent states that Google Panda creates a ratio with a site's [[backlink|inbound links]] and reference queries, search queries for the site's brand. That ratio is then used to create a sitewide modification factor. The sitewide modification factor is then used to create a modification factor for a page based upon a search query. If the page fails to meet a certain threshold, the modification factor is applied and, therefore, the page would rank lower in the search engine results page.<ref>{{cite web|last=Panda|first=Navneet|title=US Patent 8,682,892|url=http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsearch-adv.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&d=PALL&S1=08682892&OS=PN/08682892&RS=PN/08682892|publisher=USPTO|accessdate=March 31, 2014}}</ref>
The Google Panda patent (patent 8,682,892), filed on September 28, 2012, was granted on March 25, 2014. The patent states that Google Panda creates a ratio with a site's [[backlink|inbound links]] and reference queries, search queries for the site's brand. That ratio is then used to create a sitewide modification factor. The sitewide modification factor is then used to create a modification factor for a page based upon a search query. If the page fails to meet a certain threshold, the modification factor is applied and, therefore, the page would rank lower in the search engine results page.<ref>{{cite web|last=Panda|first=Navneet|title=US Patent 8,682,892|url=http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsearch-adv.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&d=PALL&S1=08682892&OS=PN/08682892&RS=PN/08682892|publisher=USPTO|accessdate=March 31, 2014}}</ref>


Google Panda affected the ranking of an entire site or a specific section rather than just the individual pages on a site.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://searchenginewatch.com/sew/study/2122234/panda-dna-algorithm-tests-google-panda-update|title=Algorithm tests on Google Panda|last=van der Graaf|first=Peter|date=November 3, 2011|publisher=[[Search Engine Watch]]}}</ref>
Google Panda affected the ranking of an entire site or a specific section rather than just the individual pages on a site.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.searchenginewatch.com/2011/11/03/panda-dna-algorithm-tests-on-the-google-panda-update/|title=Panda DNA: Algorithm Tests on the Google Panda Update|last=van der Graaf|first=Peter|date=November 3, 2011|publisher=[[Search Engine Watch]]}}</ref>


==Updates==
==Updates==

Revision as of 16:05, 25 November 2020

Google Panda is a major change to Google's search results ranking algorithm that was first released in February 2011. The change aimed to lower the rank of "low-quality sites" or "thin sites",[1] in particular "content farms",[2] and return higher-quality sites near the top of the search results.

CNET reported a surge in the rankings of news websites and social networking sites, and a drop in rankings for sites containing large amounts of advertising.[3] This change reportedly affected the rankings of almost 12 percent of all search results.[4] Soon after the Panda rollout, many websites, including Google's webmaster forum, became filled with complaints of scrapers/copyright infringers getting better rankings than sites with original content. At one point, Google publicly asked for data points to help detect scrapers better.[5] In 2016, Matt Cutts, Google's head of webspam at the time of the Panda update, commented that "with Panda, Google took a big enough revenue hit via some partners that Google actually needed to disclose Panda as a material impact on an earnings call. But I believe it was the right decision to launch Panda, both for the long-term trust of our users and for a better ecosystem for publishers."[2]

Google's Panda received several updates after the original rollout in February 2011, and their effect went global in April 2011. To help affected publishers, Google provided an advisory on its blog,[6] thus giving some direction for self-evaluation of a website's quality. Google has provided a list of 23 bullet points on its blog answering the question of "What counts as a high-quality site?" that is supposed to help webmasters "step into Google's mindset".[7]

The name "Panda" comes from Google engineer Navneet Panda, who developed the technology that made it possible for Google to create and implement the algorithm.[8][4]

Ranking factors

The Google Panda patent (patent 8,682,892), filed on September 28, 2012, was granted on March 25, 2014. The patent states that Google Panda creates a ratio with a site's inbound links and reference queries, search queries for the site's brand. That ratio is then used to create a sitewide modification factor. The sitewide modification factor is then used to create a modification factor for a page based upon a search query. If the page fails to meet a certain threshold, the modification factor is applied and, therefore, the page would rank lower in the search engine results page.[9]

Google Panda affected the ranking of an entire site or a specific section rather than just the individual pages on a site.[10]

Updates

For the first two years, Google Panda's updates were rolled out about once a month, but Google stated in March 2013 that future updates would be integrated into the algorithm and would therefore be less noticeable and continuous.[11][12]

Google released a "slow rollout" of Panda 4.2 starting on July 18, 2015.[13]

See also

References

  1. ^ "How Google Panda & Places Updates Created A Rollercoaster Ride For IYP Traffic". Search Engine Land. Retrieved April 11, 2018.
  2. ^ a b O'Reilly, Tim (November 16, 2016). "Media in the age of algorithms". O'Reilly Media. Retrieved November 17, 2016.
  3. ^ Testing Google's Panda algorithm: CNET analysis, CNET.com, April 18, 2011
  4. ^ a b TED 2011: The 'Panda' That Hates Farms: A Q&A With Google’s Top Search Engineers, Wired.com, March 3, 2011
  5. ^ "Google Losing War With Scraper Sites, Asks For Help". Search Engine Watch.
  6. ^ "Another step to reward high-quality sites". Official Google Webmaster Central Blog.
  7. ^ "More guidance on building high-quality sites". Google. Retrieved April 11, 2018.
  8. ^ Google Panda at Brafton
  9. ^ Panda, Navneet. "US Patent 8,682,892". USPTO. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
  10. ^ van der Graaf, Peter (November 3, 2011). "Panda DNA: Algorithm Tests on the Google Panda Update". Search Engine Watch.
  11. ^ Schwartz, Barry. "Google: Panda To Be Integrated Into The Search Algorithm (Panda Everflux)". Search Engine Land. Retrieved May 26, 2014.
  12. ^ "Google Algorithm Change History". Moz. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
  13. ^ "Google Panda 4.2 Is Here; Slowly Rolling Out After Waiting Almost 10 Months". Search Engine Land. Retrieved July 22, 2015.
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