Google revenue nearly doubles

Internet search engine giant Google saw its third-quarter revenue
nearly double from a year ago and profit rise in what usually is a
slow Web surfing period.

The Internet bellwether on Thursday posted a net income of $381.2
million, or $1.32 a share, on record revenue of $1.58 billion, up 96
percent from a year earlier on strong global advertising.

A year ago, the company posted earnings of 19 cents a share and
revenue of $805.9 million, Google said.

Excluding $530 million in traffic acquisition costs, the portion of
revenue shared with partners, Google posted revenue of $1.05 billion.

Google's earnings would have been $1.51 per share if not for charges
related to employee stock options and research and development. That
handily beat analyst expectations, on average, of $1.36 per share and
revenue of $944.4 million, excluding traffic acquisition costs.

Nearly all of Google's revenue comes from advertisements that appear
on search result pages and on partner sites. The Mountain View,
Calif.-based company accounts for about 45 percent of all U.S.
Internet searches, compared with 23 percent for Yahoo and 12 percent
for Microsoft's MSN, according to Nielsen/NetRatings.

Google has beaten analyst estimates in the three quarters since going
public last year. Meanwhile, its share price has skyrocketed, rising
nearly 60 percent since the beginning of the year and reaching a high
of $321.28 on Oct. 4.

The company raised more than $4 billion in a September stock sale,
bringing its cash total to about $7 billion.

On Tuesday, Google's chief rival, Yahoo, posted higher third-quarter
profit and revenue from a year ago and beat analyst expectations.

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