Google creates new parent company: Alphabet

Google has created a new parent company, called Alphabet. Announced on 10th August 2015, the tech world were shocked but no harm was done to the Google share price as it seems to be a good move - it actually rose by 5 percent! Whether you like Google or not they do seem to have their business heads screwed on correctly!

And of all the comments about Alphabet on Twitter, this one is my favourites which describes Googles new parent company, Alphabet, perfectly (in my opinion):

"Instead of parking the future in a lab off in a building somewhere, Google split the whole company structure in two: current and future."

Will Alphabet harm my website?

So what does this mean for you and your website? Well at the moment, nothing much. Alphabet will be the ‘holding’ company rather than ‘the new Google’. Larry Page (Founder of Google with Sergey Brin) said that there are no plans to turn Alphabet into a forward-facing brand.

"We are not intending for this to be a big consumer brand with related products - the whole point is that Alphabet companies should have independence and develop their own brands," he explained.

Meaning that the creation of Alphabet will allow each individual business within it to invest in their own brands. Google will still be the flagship company but the move will allow future technologies to be enhanced.

What's the split?

Google will keep its everyday Google offerings such as: Google search, maps, advertising, YouTube and Android as well as other aspects of the 'Google business' i.e. Gmail, Drive and Docs.

The new standalone companies will be Calico (anti-ageing biotech company), Sidewalk (smart cities firm), Nest, which focuses on Internet of Things (IoT) devices, and Fibre, Google's internet infrastructure.

The remaining areas are Google Ventures and Google Capital, and the Google X division that focuses on areas like self-driving cars and internet balloons.

Why split Google

Google is planning for the future. At the moment the core ‘Google' services listed above make up the bulk of the company's revenues, which are mostly search and advertising. However, looking ahead, areas like the IoT, self-driving cars, biotechnology and so on, could well become vital parts of Google/Alphabet's future growth, and become major standalone businesses in their own right.

Written By Kirsty Paget