UnGoogle yourself this minute! Or else! 12 Dec 2006

Check out the threatening email Dean Hunt received from a disgruntled online retailer. Reading it made coffee come out of my nose. Here's a quick excerpt:

"On Thursday morning I checked our google positions and your site is now above us for this term. I have checked your blog and it has nothing to do with [keyphrase], so I think it would be best all round if you remove your blog from google for this search term...If you do not remove yourself from Google for this search, then I will call them myself and have you removed."

When Dean then tried to explain how Google / the internet works, he was met with the following response:

"You have to understand Dean that an online business should be higher in Google than a blog.

"Don't forget that Google is a business as well, they obviously make more money from other businesses than they do from blogs, so it is in their interest that I am higher than you for certain searches.

"I have also contacted my lawyer about this issue, so you should expect a letter in the post very soon."

This has got to be a wind-up. Surely. Hasn't it?

[via eConsultancy]