Google Panda patent granted
In 2014, a patent (Ranking search results) written by Google’s Navneet Panda and Vladimir Ofitserov – possibly describing the Google Panda algorithm update, or parts of it – was granted.
However, the fact that Google was granted this patent didn’t necessarily mean it was being used by Google at the time, or that it hadn’t been modified since the application was filed.
Read all about it in Google Granted Patent For Panda Algorithm and dive deeper into Bill Slawski’s Google’s Panda Granted a Patent on Ranking Search Results and Is Ranking Search Results the Panda Patent? on SEO by the Sea. And here’s the patent.
In short, it was about looking at inbound links and how many search queries were made about a particular page/resource, and it modified the “initial scores” for the pages/resources being ranked.
Slawski explained the patent had many parts that worked together:
- Determining, for many groups of resources, a count of independent incoming links to help in the group
- Deciding, for each of the plurality of groups of resources, a count of reference queries
- Choosing, for each of the plurality of groups of resources, a respective group-specific modification factor, wherein the group-specific modification factor for each group get based on the count of independent links and the count of reference queries for the group
- Associating, with each of the plurality of groups of resources, the respective group-specific modification factor for the group, wherein the respective group-specific modification for the group modifies initial scores generated for help in the group in response to received search queries
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From Search Marketing Expo (SMX)
Past contributions from Search Engine Land’s Subject Matter Experts (SMEs)
These columns are a snapshot in time and have not been updated since publishing, unless noted. Opinions expressed in these articles are those of the author and not necessarily Search Engine Land.
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